Humphrey the Lone Wolf
by Dancing Lunar Wolves
Summary: Humphrey now left with nothing after Kate vowed to unite the Eastern and Western packs with Garth. Whats left for him? A life of solitude, adventure, joy and sorrow? Whatever happens he knows that now he's a lone wolf.
1. Prologue

**After my last story. Which shall not be named. I figured give this type of story setting a shot. So I'm gonna try it. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**:Can't Look Back:**

The mid spring air wafted through the valley. Howls echoed in rejoice for the occasion to be soon.

It was about noon in the pack grounds. The valley had come to life with wolves running in preparation for their union with the Eastern pack.

Everything was near ready, soon they would all be able to live in peace as one.

But four wolves above all were torn by this. Only one of them would have even thought about this new path.

"Humphrey are you okay"

"Oh, um yea I'll be fine Kate" he nervously placed a paw behind his head. So many things were going through his mind now, but he had to say his goodbye to her.

She eyed him curiously knowing this wasn't like him. This wasn't the 'fun loving omega' she had admired.

"Are you sure"

He sighed "Yes, I'm okay...just I-i gotta go, I just can't miss the train"

With that he turned and started walking away. The feelings just too painful, he had to leave.

"Well, I hope your travels go well" Kate said to him. She too felt a heaviness about him leaving, but was sure there was nothing she could do.

The grey wolf looked back and felt his heart sink. Nothing could have prepared him mentally for this.

"How could this have happened" he thought watching Kate walk down the face of the steep cliff.

Everything had happened so fast that it started making his head spin. He wanted to tell her, but now it was too late. She was to unite the packs with Garth and then...

He didn't know it yet but his crystal blue eyes started to water.

Sniffling he watched as she finally disappeared down into the valley.

With tears blurring his vision he turned and ran towards the forrest.

He could barely see where he was going and just thinking about her hurt him deeply. She meant everything to him, and he'd do anything for her.

Scrambling through the woods towards the train he tripped and fell over an exposed tree root. He tumbled foreword and fell on his chest.

"Oww... agh thats gonna leave a mark" he picked himself up and looked at his paws and sides.

Several small bruises, and a few scrapes were scattered about him.

"Yep" he sighed "Gonna feel that tomorrow, I'll get Janice and Re-"

He stopped then and stared at his paw, suddenly remembering what he said he'd do. The thought made him twitch slightly, he had to leave Jasper.

Looking back towards the pack grounds he started to shudder. He would be leaving everything behind, friends, family, shelter, and even Kate.

"I-i can't leave Kate" he just knew there had to be a way. Taking one step foreword he heard something that nearly broke him down.

Howls echoed past him all seemingly coming from the center of the valley. He knew then and there it was all too late for him.

His ears pinned to the back of his head and almost feeling his heart stop he ran towards the train tracks. Ignoring his pain as best as he could he heard the faint sound of the train passing through.

More howls passed him as he rushed towards his destination. Shortly after he arrived on a hill next to the tracks.

The train had just come into view seemingly slowing down just enough for him to make it on safely.

Humphrey turned back one last time and silently shed a single tear. Hanging his head low he awaited the train "I'm sorry Kate, I have to leave".

When his opportunity for an open lone box car came he jumped with all the strength he could muster. Barely making it in and with an awkward landing he was headed to any destination but here.

In his heart he knew he had to take this path. It would be painful for him to leave everything behind. It would be long, even possibly until the end of his life. Looking over the valley and seeing it go by, his new life would be just as he thought.

Blinking a few times as tears pooled in his eyes and pain came to his heart once more. "I.." he tried to form the words, it stung, but it was now true "I'm a lone wolf".

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**Heyz all itz r meh... yepz i think? anywho I got this idea from well... my other story... the A&O one. I'm supposed to be updating that one soon. And the update is coming soon. This will be a decent sized series and I hope you enjoy. Till next time. I'm still DLW**


	2. P1

**Ohkay...so... I'm seeing that this is going by well. So I'll just have to continue the story. Its got a good pace, so why stop the train. Pun possibly intended... Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**:Relocation:**

Humphrey had just arrived in the train box car safely. He still hurt form the scrape he sustained earlier, but he would manage.

A smile plastered on his muzzle in victory knowing he was at-least successful in getting here. "Well looks like we made it Ka-" he stopped forgetting she wasn't there anymore.

He bent his head down in remorse. The train rattled and shook as it carried its cargo and one stow away aboard.

He honestly wanted to stay with her, but it would have been too much for him. He couldn't stand up to Garth anyways.

"I..." he started to cry his world was crashing down on him. "I-i'm just a-an..." he started to shake "an omega".

He was frozen in silence. Their whole journey started with them leaving. Their bond grew and they learned from each other. Then it ended with him bringing her back.

Kate was the best thing that happened to mim. She was one wolf that he in his heart he knew felt the same way. But it was never meant for them to be.

The slow shaking of the train was becoming like a soft melody to him. Slow, even, steady, full of memories. It echoed in his silence letting him know he was alone.

A moment later he felt a slight stinging on the back of his paw followed by a cooling sensation.

"Huh, what is that". He sat in the silence and moved his paw closer for an inspection. Thankful for the light still outside he saw a damp spot on his fur. It was around one of the areas he had scrapped himself earlier.

"Still hurts a little" he placed his paw down and once again felt the sting once more. "Okay, not good" he panicked and looked down at the wound.

A stray tear fell to his paw causing him to wince in pain. Taking his free paw he moved it across his muzzle. Almost instantly he could feel the fur across his arm matt. When he was done a deep grey streak ran down to his elbow.

The train passed over a few bumps when he looked down at the mark. "Heh" he scoffed, trying to fake a smile "I guess there's no use crying anymore".

The sound of the train whistle drew his attention. "I gotta get over this somehow"

trying to sound convincing Humphrey took a moment to look out of the box car he so sneakily landed in.

"Oh wow" he said, looking at the orange setting sun nearly faded in the distance. From what he could tell he was somewhere near the edge of the pack borders. Jasper 's mountain range from what he had remembered never looked this great except for when he was with her.

Just the thought of Kate made him start to tear up. Quickly he tore his eyes away from the sight and looked around. He still hadn't thought of anything other than Kate as of yet, and he knew not knowing your surroundings was a huge mistake for a lone wolf.

"Lone wolf" he muttered. Still not used to the feeling he shook his head and peered around.

He had to lighten his own mood "Lets see what we got here". Several wooden boxes and a few sturdy looking wood slabs sat mere feet behind him. Directly ahead of him it looked like various tools of some kind. "Ah must be the um... some kind of building material or something"

Humphrey walked closer to one of the crates it labeled "insulation". Curious he himself to see what was inside. What he found made him smile a bit. Small pink rolls of some padded material filled the crate.

He lifted his paw to touch it. It was dense, pliable, and looked like the best place in this box to sleep.

"Looks good enough" he turned to see the door of the train car open and he got one final glimpse of the park. "I guess this is goodbye" suddenly the mountain range started to become obscured by dense forrest trees.

He sighed, never thinking that his last glimpse of home would be so dreary. "I guess its better this way". Looking up the faint orange glow of the sun had all but vanished and pale moonlight started to peak over the other side of the box.

He shrugged his shoulders "I guess nows a good of a time as any to get some sleep". He yawned finally realizing how tired he was. A chilling breeze hit him, making him shiver slightly. "Good thing there's a nice bed here" he smiled looking back towards the empty crate.

The moment he reached the crate he jumped in landing smoothly. Thankful he had tested the material earlier it proved better than what he originally thought. Circling around and pressing the soft padding down he lowered himself and yawned.

Humphrey yawned and caught one last glance out into the wilderness. The train was soon to cross a bridge, and for him that was a renewed hope. "Tomorrow-" the constant click of the train tracks and rocking rocking motion were quickly lulling him to sleep "will be a brighter start".

The train continued to move at that steady even pace. clicking on the tracks as it went. Its destination unknown to one sleeping wolf. Yet there was always the hope of tomorrow over the horizon.

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**Hmm... I really need more to write... and read... Is this mike on? Really it is? they can hear all of this? PERFECT! Anywho. I hoped you all enjoyed it, more to come please R&R&R. And catch me next time, till then I am hopefully not someone that is not DLW.**


	3. P2

**Hmm... this is going by smoothly... like a Reese's milkshake! those are great btw's. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**:Drifter:**

The train was moving swiftly through the country side. Moonlight fell in slivers upon one storage unit in particular. Its rocking motion and secured cargo helped a stray passenger fall into a deep slumber.

Humphrey lay asleep on the soft plush material. Slow and even intakes of breath and the swishing of his tail betrayed what little peace he had. Recent events weighed heavily on his mind.

Humphrey slowly opened his eyes only to receive pitch black darkness. "Mmm... where am I" he said trying to wipe the sleep out of his eyes.

He could see nothing but a faint light ahead of him. It flickered on and off seemingly coming from a small hole. "Thats odd" he yawned and got up from his rest and looked around.

The first thing he noticed was that he was in a rather small area. "I don't remember being in here" he said walking towards the light. He felt something he didn't expect on his feet. The floor he stood on was a solid smooth and rather smooth stone.

Glossy in appearance thanks to the light and a deep bluish color. "Oookay... definitely weird" he placed his paw back down uttering a click from his claw against the stone. The click echoed all around him gradually fading towards where the light danced.

"Looks like thats the only way out" he checked again and saw nothing behind him. A cold ominous air blew by and he shivered, now determined to get out of this place.

He took off without thinking another moment. The light he ran towards seemed to get further and further and higher with every step. "This is getting annoying" he ran as fast as he could, hearing the constant clicking of his claws was starting to drive him insane.

After a bout a minute of running he felt tired "Gotta *huff* get... out". He decided to sit down for a moment and pant, feeling that even as far as he had run he was still nowhere near the exit.

The noise he made earlier still rang throughout the cave like area, but it grew louder than when he was sprinting. "Agh what's that noise" he picked his paws up to cover his ears while searching for the source of the incessant clicking.

He looked towards where the light was. Studying it carefully and lifting a paw off of his ear he didn't hear it coming from that direction. It sounded like it was behind him and it was getting louder.

He was starting to get worried, what was making all the noise. "I was just there" he muttered and started to turn his head "There wasn't an..y...th-".

The moment he turned to see the source of the noise he regretted it. His eyes went wide, his fur almost pale. He nearly ripped his ear off trying to get on all fours to sprint.

Down the narrow path that he had just come from several pairs of gleaming dots raced towards him. A mass of deep red followed it, nearly identical to a shadow.

He gritted his teeth and barely stopped himself from yelling in sheer terror. This strange thing was just far enough away for him to get a head-start, but was quickly gaining on him.

"G...gOttA- Run" he staggered his words in-between steps. Fear gripped his heart of what this thing was chasing him. Regardless of what it was he risked a look back.

This time when he saw it it was right on his heels. He had finally lost whatever calm he had. He screamed seeing it that close. Sharp red coated fangs, long jagged nails, the air around it seemed heavy and smelled pungent.

In his panic he missed a step and tumbled forward. Those bruises he had earlier seemed to relight in pain. "gotta r-" he was cut off by a heavy force pressing down on his side.

Almost pale with terror he looked up to see what it was. It was deep red and had long strands of fur growing from its body. He was pinned down by one of its deformed and twisted claws. he tried to struggle, but with the weight on him he had no strength left to fight, let alone out-run this thing.

Tears came to his eyes and he saw just above it the light from earlier. It swayed back and forth as the creature slowly drew out another claw. Everything seemed to move slowly then. It seemed like forever until he felt a sharp pain in his forehead.

"AAAAAGH" he landed with a thud to the cold metal plating of the train car. "AAAhh" he yelled flailing his limbs trying to find his balance unaware of his awakening. "Wh..whe" he tried to breathe, finding it hard to from his scare. Sharp heaves followed suit and he placed felt his heart beating too fast. "Gotta" *huff* "Calm...I...m aliv". Feeling relief he sat there for a moment longer catching his breath. He had no idea of what had happened, but for now he was sure he was alive.

"Ag-Owwww" he felt a bump on his head and places his paws there. "Agh what, what was that...where..." He peeked one eye open only to find that he was back in the train. It shook every few moments as if to re sing him the lullaby that gave him his nightmare.

"Thats a relief, but what about the... oh" he glanced just above him to see the crate he was sleeping in. Shreds of the insulation material were tossed about . Judging by where he was he fell out head first onto the floor. He started rubbing the bump seeing no other way to call the situation "Explains how I got down here".

Humphrey saw outside of the box-car and noticed it was still dark outside. The train was still moving at a good pace and it was still chilly. He stood up and shook himself off "That was...terrifying, and its still too early".

He turned and jumped back into the crate, fixing some of the material again to be somewhat comfortable. "First day and nightmares... this is gonna be a rough ride". Still plagued with the nightmare Humphrey stayed in he crate trying to sort things out.

His journey was a new start but was it worth it. New places, new sights, and hopefully a new grasp on his life. 'Whatever happens to me at this point' he thought 'I hope things wont end like that nightmare'.

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**So it begins...or ends...something in the middle? hopefully not... seriously its about to begin...what am i saying? you'll find out but i may never tell or will i? point is i'll write it, probably not tell. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did please R&R&R&R&R&R. Till next time I'm DLW**


	4. P3

**First off... [Thankiez for all those who read and reviewed, makes writing... well more exciting]. Now then. then and now. Here and there. This has nothing to do with anything but it should be said irreguardless... Hope you enjoy! Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**:Arrival:**

Some time had passed as Humphrey dozed off again. His nightmare no longer fresh in his mind seemed a distant and mysterious blur. Only time would tell if it would return.

He had shifted several times to get into the right spot comfortable enough to sleep in. The wolf lay somewhat on his back twitching slightly. His mouth agape and his tongue rolled out over his makeshift bed.

He slept peacefully blissfully unaware of any danger. Not knowing how long he had traveled. No loud noises terrorizing him, or potential hazards. He just lay there moving to the motions of the train that carried him.

He didn't know when but something started to tickle his nose. "Ng...sth" fumbling his words he tried to fall back asleep. He felt something on his nose once more, but this time he moved his paw in place to block the incessant sensation.

A moment later and it felt like it had stopped and he slowly moved his arm back into a comfortable position. Immediately he felt it again "sta...sta..phi". After his efforts failing he jerked his head away making contact with the crate's well crafted walls "AAHHhhh... owwww...". He moved both paws to his head instinctively trying to relieve the pressure.

Carefully he opened one eye, steadily adjusting to the sunlight beaming through the open door. He was a-bit upset from something constantly bothering him. "What was that" taking a moment to look carefully he noticed his shredded bed and pieced of it floating down gently to the floor.

Looking over himself he found several stray pieces of the insulation clung to his fur. Sighing he went to remove the pieces "This stuff's okay to sleep on, but terrible to get rid of". He was successful in removing most of it, but a few stragglers remained. Sighing he turned his head to try to reach them "Just a few more".

He was interrupted from his grooming by the trains horn echoing past him. Turning his head outside finally ridding himself of his bedding he wondered where he was.

It was bright enough to see outside. A large mountain came into his view, surrounded by a dense forrest. He started to smile, things were looking p for him "This looks like a good of a start as any".

Trees whizzed by and a breeze caught hold to his temporary dwellings. Closing his eyes he took a sniff of the air and caught a whole mass of scents. "Well, it smells alright, and the view's amazing" sweeping his tail across the floor he stared out in excitement.

Suddenly he felt the train beginning to halt is pace. He slid a few inches forward just past the open door. "Oh kay, looks like my stop is soon then" he looked at where he was and saw the pile of equipment from earlier.

Through the screech of the brakes on the train he noticed something that peaked his interests. A small yellow bag lay on the floor, concealed by several smaller objects "Hmm... lets see what we got here".

As best as he could he moved some of the random things in his way. A moment later he managed to uncover what he sought out "And this would be...". He looked at the bag, it was simple and design, some logo on the front, and looked like it had food in it.

The thought of food excited him "Well a quick bite for the road wouldn't hurt". Reaching down and grabbed the bag in his jaws, it crunched lightly and left small holes in it. After hearing the crunch he sniffed it "Oh yea this is gonna be good". In mere seconds he placed his paws on the bag and starting tearing it open to claim his prize.

He was greeted with a strange food, yellow, brittle and round. He was expecting s bit more than what he had spent his efforts on but still "ah well lone wolves can't be choosers". The thought of the pack flashed in his mind but he dismissed it and started devouring the snack.

About halfway through he heard voices coming from behind him. Still finishing one of the chips he turned and saw a human staring at him. "Um...this is bad" in his hunger he hadn't realized that the train had come to a complete stop.

The figure stood there frozen for a moment. Silence befalling them all, though for Humphrey the silence was more unsettling.

"See Bill I told you there was one" someone said from behind the person staring at him.

"Well good thing we can put it down, quick hand it over" the guy turned and reached for something.

Humphrey had to act fast, he knew what was coming. He saw past him and into the dense pine forrest. Knowing he was safer where he could hide his mind raced to catch up with his actions. "Nononono" He got up leaving his snack behind and ran towards them.

The moment he got close enough his fears were realized, but instead of halting he reacted. His claws scrapped against the metal of the box car and he jumped over them both. He looked down and saw both men string in shock. As he landed a flash of black metal gleamed from the hands of the man yelling earlier.

A loud bang echoed past him and it seemed to cause the two behind him duck in response. "Nows my chance" hurriedly while they were recovering from shock he ran into the woods just beyond the tracks.

He just ran, not looking back in fear. 'If i look back' he thought 'I might fall and get caught'. Nothing to him seemed scarier for now than that. He continued running as quickly as he could, never missing a step, nor looking back. "Well despite this" he looked forward, seeing a large tree he could stop behind and rest "I'm not doing to bad for being by myself".

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**Well now. Now well? yea let me stop myself here. I hope you enjoyed reading this part and know there's more to come. Also if you read the things at the bottom I usually say something funny. If you get a chance R&R, its always welcome. Till next time I'm DLW**


	5. P4

**Well now that this this chap is up i'm gonna update by a set scheduled time. Likely every few days than every day. Its gonna be a fairly long story with lots of ... well its like a sandwich. Gotta have stuff to fill it. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**:Adventure:**

Humphrey ran towards the tree as fast as his limbs could carry him 'don't chase me, don't chase me,don't chase me'. Hs mind wandered to what would happen if he were caught by the two and every situation was worst than the last.

His pads gripped and tore through every blade of grass he stepped on, but he would soon be at his destination. Humphrey looked up and saw the tree he sought refuge under "Almost made it".

Thick deep brown bark covered the tree, it sat on a hill large enough to be used as cover. The tree bloomed with flowers concealed by deep green leaves. Without looking back he made his final steps behind his temporary shelter.

Having his slender grey tail disappear behind the bark he ensured he wasn't able to be seen by anyone on the other side. He had been running so long he had tired himself out without knowing it.

Overheated he began to pant "I'm okay" he said between breaths "Still *huff* not dead yet". Catching his breath he looked in every direction he could. "I hope those guys aren't gonna show up" he peered around the tree only seeing more of the forest.

Quiet and calm, motionless from anything larger than himself, he was finally safe. "Well" he gestured wiping his paws off "Thats over, now what to do". He had to come up with a plan "Food would be great, that little snack wasn't the best when it got dangerous".

He chuckled at the thought, remembering how Kate had saved him last time he thought about food rather than survival. "Kate" even remembering her like this was hurtful.

"Come on Humphrey think" he shouted to himself trying to ease the pain by occupying his mind with his survival. He paced around the tree "I need...well, knowing this place would be great, so yea I'll start from there"

Knowing he had to get a better understanding of the area he looked up. Far ahead of him was rather large valley with a breath taking mountain peak.

Surprisingly enough the snowy mountain was covered to the base despite the change in season "Mountains are great and all, but terrible places to be alone at night".

Closer to him were several long ravines and shining bodies of water. Tall grassy meadows void of any lurking danger. Light touched down in this area more than any other, making it more beautiful than any place he had been before.

Winding rivers and dense woods ensured that there would be plenty of food for him "Definitely not Jasper, but still its pretty good".

Lastly he saw several deep grey clouds looming over the valley. Ominous in appearance and their approach darkened the land below, another thought crept into his mind "I forgot shelter, this is not good".

Indeed in his haste to get wherever he was he forgot one of the most important aspects, where to sleep safely. Carefully looking at the situation he attempted to guess how much time he had left.

Scratching his ear he got an estimate. Judging by the position of the sun and the distance of the clouds he got his answer "The storm won't hit until late night, so I've got some time".

Getting up and walking down the hill he looked agin at the dense clouds "Untill then I've got some searching around to do". Reaching the bottom of the hilly area he stood on he sought to make the best of his time "Well gotta start somewhere".

Picking a path that he had deemed easy to traverse through the forest he treaded carefully into the unknown territory. Tall cedar and oak trees provided good cover for him incase he had to hide somewhere "If I know the area well enough then a safe retreat is always available".

Taking note of the well established backup plan he proceeded through the from atop the canopy and smaller creatures ran away when he got near enough "Plenty of food, lots of space, now to find some water".

Walking a bit further just past a line of trees he came to a large grassy plain. Every blade seemed to dance in unison, gleaming from rainwater and bathing in the sun.

"I wonder" he paused at the line of grass hoping he was right. Taking a chance he walked through "I think its just on the other side, but just to be sure". It was tough getting through the maze like grass, snapping some of the blades and nearly tripping over others.

"Thank you fur" he said glad to have a relatively thick coat to take cushion the hits from the grass.

Moments later he saw the line of grass receding and a light shining through "Ah must be it". Carefully he took a few steps forward and emerged from the cover.

The moment he emerged he grew even more excited "YES, I was right". Shouting in joy he managed to find one of the areas streams.

Water flowed steadily and evenly, silent in most areas. It was murky in most areas, but still drinkable.

Deep shadows ran through the stream in all directions avoiding rocks along the bottom. The sound of the stream was calming and on the other side rolling hills, and a valley leading to the mountain.

"It's absolutely perfect" he said happy to have everything his old home had. In that moment he stopped. "Everything" his voice sounded much lower than before. If he had everything then why did even this feel empty.

He had everything, but he was missing everything he had. "Family" he looked down in despair. Seeing his muddied expression in the reflection of the water reminded him of what he gave up.

"Friends" every word he said stung deeper. In truth he knew he would miss them, but he couldn't say goodbye. He had made it, fulfilling his spur of the moment dream out of heartbreak. He was finally away from it all, everything he knew and everyone he loved. "I...I'm alone" he bent his head down towards the muddy water.

This feeling he had, the sadness he felt, there was only one way for him to express his pain. Raising his head and finding the right notes he began to howl. What he thought he would turn into a symphony of beauty from sorrow was only a cacophony of despair from agony.

Realizing that he sounded terrible he stopped, his stray tears dripped into the stream. Through his sobs Humphrey learned the pains and depths of his sorrow "No...I". Through his deep and well deserved sobs he realized "Why can't I howl"

**End of Prologue**

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**HA... I laugh at myself. Cause I'm funny like that sometimes. Anywho more to come on this story, but I'm picking up the pace on some of my others soon enough. Also next time starts the begining of the first part of the series I'll get a schedule going for this soon and all will be well. Till next time I'm DLW**


	6. Part 1 Valley of Grey

**Welcome to the story. Here we have exhibit A the first actual part of his lonely life. And... hold on a sec, what do you mean don't give anything away... fine. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**The choices you make become the colors of your life**

A grim silence emcompassed the mourning wolf. Terror had struck him before, fear had grasped his long ago. But what this new feeling was, even he had yet to conquer.

Humphrey sat there wide eyed at what just happened. "m-my..h-howl" He started shaking once more, curling his tail around him in a futile effort to find security.

He had been looking for solace and a life without a pack and thats just what he found.

Glossy eyed at the sudden shock the lone wolf tried to process what just happened.

His selfish desire and his incessant affections towards Kate brought him here. "why me" he felt a stream of tears running down his muzzle into the murky water below.

A cold silent wind blew past him. Its chill caught every bristle of fur on his coat. He had nothing left to go to but a life alone. Every time that word reached his mind he trembled more.

He felt miserable. A wolf that couldn't how? A wolf that had no voice? Was he even a wolf anymore. He didn't know who or what he was without his pack, without having his friends, and now even without Kate.

Holding his arms close to himself and swaying back and forth he wanted all of this to just end. Never before in his short life had he felt anything like this.

He didn't know why but he couldn't find the strength nor the emotions to howl.

Kate, his friends, his family, he left everything behind because of selfish ambition. The moment had passed and his ambition fulfilled, but what did he have to show for it.

"I... I can't go back" he knew that even though he was pained here it would be nothing like seeing Kate and Garth. He felt small, choked up and most of all despite his new adventure "I'm alone".

He felt a pain in his chest and burning in his heart. He started feeling lightheaded and uncomfortably hot. His skin became incredibly itchy all over and his mouth started to water.

The once peaceful sound of calm flowing water became a constant and irritating noise. "So...looo-uuudd" he could barely hear himself talk. The feeling of drowsiness started to set in

"Huh" he lowered his arms to the ground, misplacing his step in the process. He felt like his whole being weighed a ton.

Suddenly he felt the world spinning around him. His vision became filled with contrasting white and black. Before he could even react he saw was the ground turning to meet him.

He collapsed there right at the water of the stream. Its flow partially running over his head, darkening and matting his fur. A constant blur ran through his vision until all became dark.

Humphrey fought to keep awake, but like his vision of becoming a lone wolf even this was too much to bear. He didn't know what was going on but he drifted to sleep.

He couldn't do much now with his body freezing and heavily plagued by his decision. 'maybe' he thought 'i was wrong'

**So you see I'm still plotting things out, however all should go well. Yes this chapter is shorter, and this is the intro to the first part. However I'm posting my schedule soon and this is just part 1 of X many. Each part will have theme chapters and... well it will make more sense when you click the drop-down menu and the next chapter. Hierarchy ftw. The story will have several diferent parts archiving each point where he had a change in his life. I hope you enjoy. If you can R&R&R. And vote if you get a chance it helps with what story comes out when. Till next time I'm DLW**


	7. Ch 1 Greener Grass

**Oh kayz and welcome. This is the first chapter of part 1. Many more to come and lots more adventure to be had. Please enjoy while I finish up my other story Alpha and Omega: The Week After(gonna be out later on today sometime or early tomorrow). Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**On either side it looks better, but after the experience was it worth it?**

In the edge of the grassy field Humphrey lay asleep. Exhausted from his own efforts to get away from it all. Pained by the life he knew he had ahead.

"uggghhh" The wolf slowly regained consciousness. He had no idea of how long he was there. He barely managed to find the strength to open his eyes. His blurred vision ebbing he was finally rousing out of his slumber.

Immediately he began to feel cold and heavy. "Where is this" his voice hoarse and lazy he shifted his eyes in every possible direction. He was near the border of the grassy plain he had seen earlier.

'Okay thats a start' he remembered that he had a breakdown earlier. That thought alone made him pin his ears to his head. When he did this he heard a splash.

"Hmm..." tilting his head up he got more of the sound and the cold sting of water. "AUGH C-CO-CCOL" he thrashed his head and shivered. His ear drenched in the stream water and numb, he realized fully where he was.

Chattering his teeth he twisted his body awkwardly to find which side of him the ground was on. Wide-eyed from the sudden cold shock he was finally up.

There Humphrey sat on the edge of the stream. His head soaked from the water, body shivering from the cold. His deeply rooted sorrow eating at his mind, but he had to go on.

Still shivering he looked towards the sky. 'How long was I out' it was dim at that time. Grey overcast loomed over him and a slight wind blew. Just over the ridge he saw several bright flashes.

By the time he looked back down he felt something wet running off his muzzle. 'is that what i think it is' his hopes of just a stray fish splashing in the stream were erased when he saw more rippled in the water.

The sky started to open and a cool rain drizzled on the area. 'Not good, definitely not good' his life was on the line, and he may have just blown it.

He turned panicked and looked around for somewhere to ride out the storm "Nnnn-need, sh-she-Aah choo". Practically throwing him to the ground with a powerful sneeze he knew he had gotten sick.

"Ugh thats perfect" despite his sarcasm he knew there'd be more trouble if he didn't find someplace to stay.

"Think Humphrey think" he paced around gathering his thoughts. "Where would the best place for a den be".

He saw the stream flowing and the trees blowing in the wind "Well If I want to get even worse the I'd cross now and try to make a place". Throwing that idea way he looked for something suitable for now.

He looked behind him and saw the wall of grass from before "Would that work". Just behind him he could hear the roll of thunder, and the sound of rain increased.

"Well it'll be better than nothing" Humphrey jumped to his feet. The ground below him had become muddy causing him to sink a bit 'Yea not good at all, I just need some time'.

Lifting his feet out of the mud he found it clung to his fur tightly "Good thing there's water here". He looked up, rain continued to fall getting heavier by the minute 'It's now or never for a good place"

He ran towards the grass, feeling slightly weighed down. He wondered weather it was because of the water, the mud, or because he was cold.

"Grassy meadow huh, I need something to stay under" making it to the edge of the grass he took one stride and leapt through. 'Its just like earlier' he thought weaving through the tall stalks hoping for shelter.

'Running for my life, pursuing some crazy adventure, alone" he stopped for a moment. He didn't know why he stopped, he had already known the feeling but had to think of something to keep his mind off of his situation.

"I need a better view" The rain hadn't fully caught up to him, and he was thankful for that though his fur was soaked from earlier. Shaking off some of the water lodged in his fur he decided to get a better view of the area.

He looked up, lowered his body to the ground and jumped. Humphrey's grey form appeared above the tall grass, turning slightly and looking for anything that he could call home for now.

Landing safely he rustled the grass below him "Thought I saw something over there". Thunder crackled in the background and the field swayed harder in the wind, whatever he was going to do he had to act fast.

Knowing he had little time left he repeated his efforts again turning a little more "AHA". He was so excited for what he saw he forgot he hadn't landed.

When he came back down this time he shifted a little too much weight onto one side and rolled on his landing. "Augh" through his missed fall he had landed on his left front leg hard.

"Okay, bad landing" he shifted his weight around a bit and got back up " but still, theres a tree over there". With the hope of shelter within reach he stood on all fours and walked through the grass.

"AAAA" He almost fell the moment he put weight on his left leg. A sharp pain grew through the limb. "GREAT" he mentally slapped himself. Everything was going well enough then this.

He was fine back home, he had a pack that had healers. He was hurt, possibly sick, and definitely tired.

He shook his head "Not a good time for this". He couldn't fall for his despair again, in this storm it'd be the last of him.

As if on cue a vicious wind tore through the field followed by a torrent of rain.

Humphrey gathered himself together and stood once more. He couldn't use his left leg, but he had to survive.

"Survival" that word was foreign to him. Being an omega he didn't know what it truly meant. Kate was the reason he lived through his last adventure.

"Well she's not here now" he sighed looking down at his paws. Upset at what had happened between them. "No, thats over, I have to move on" Humphrey gritted his teeth and lifted his head towards the sky.

With the wind behind blowing past him and the rain pouring down on him he had to see things to the end. "I won't give up" He used his working limbs to push through the tall grass, each blade an obstacle to his goal.

Everything around him seemed to make him want to break, even his injured leg pained him enough to want to give in. "I will make it through this" he yelled, his voice carried off into the wind.

No matter the cost he had found new determination. Through his mistakes he had been given a new renewed purpose, and through this tall grass he hobbled his way towards a single shred of hope.

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**Well this new episode is out. And I have my schedule posted on my profile page under A&O. Generally I will try to keep that schedule unless I have something else to do. (Real life taking time to do a story!) wow that is sooooo true. Anyways more to come and be on the lookout for my other story update. Till next time I'm DLW.**


	8. Pt1 Ch1 Ep1

**O hai thar. Didn't see u der. Wanna cookie? Cookie is mien. but you can haz a bite... What? Moving on This is the next episode of part one chapter 1. I hope you enjoy this as a ... late 4th of July present? Yea? plz?. ALSO I'm dong the chapters as so in the dropdown menu Part, Chapter, Episode. so this one would be Part 1, Chapter 1, Episode1. Pt1 Ch1 Ep1. Next to follow will be Pt1 Ch1 Ep2 and so on. Tell me if this works or not. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Storm:**

'Oww.. gotta...owww...get...owww...tree' Humphrey hobbled along in the grass. Every stalk and blade that touched his injured paw hurt more than the last.

"Just...ah...a little...m-ore" he was determined alright, but he knew he wouldn't last much longer like this. The storm had brought more gusts of wind with it in the forefront. He had just barely beat the rain to wherever he was in the field, but in the end he knew it wasn't for long.

The tall grass he zigzagged through was more of an obstacle now than he could have thought possible. Every moment the maze of green shifted, pushing him slightly and throwing him off course from his original plan.

"Ah..." he felt another strong gust of wind push him to his side. He yelled out feeling the full force of the pain in his sprained paw.

"I have to get up" he told himself, whimpering from every movement he made with his injured limb. The pain was only adding on to the humiliation he felt from leaving the pack.

He was desperate for shelter, but he couldn't clearly see where he was headed. A vicious wind turned his straight shot to shelter into a circle of agony. He focused on up putting as little weight on his paw as he could.

Turning to the sky he grimaced at how little time he had left. The overcast skies meant the storm was closer than he had hoped for. A cool drop of rainwater fell down and ran through his fur as a testament to his soon coming fate.

Tanking a moment to breathe he thought of a way out of this mess "I need to see where I am".

With the constant rustle of grass from the coming storm he knew he was veering off course. He should have been close by now, but with all that happened he had no idea.

On every side of him it was the same a wall of swaying green. Shelter was somewhere and jumping was definitely out of the question.

More drops of rain came crashing down on him. In this state it was even harder for him to make a move. Panic started to set in "Come on think, I need to see over the grass, but I can't jump".

Humphrey looked down at his paw. The rain water starting to mat his fur to a deep grey. He began to feel cold again, time was running out.

"Okay, cold, tired, lost, and I-Auhh" he pinned his ears flat hearing thunder behind him, and it was close. He looked around him and it had become slightly darker. More rain fell making the wet grass slippery and obscuring his vision.

Humphrey knew his only hope was to see where he was, but that meant "I...". He looked down at his paw. It hurt, it truly hurt. He was barely able to keep it to his side whole limping, attempting to put any weight on it was not going to happen. "I...can't... just" with a pained expression on his face he looked up.

The sky was starting to pour down on him. Flashes of lightning in the distance didn't bode well for him. In spite of his injury the storm was worse, the pain would be terrible but his survival called for it.

He shuddered not only from the cold, but what he knew he had to do. A few tears ran down his muzzle knowing he would be in pain from the experience.

Humphrey took a deep breath and focused. He tried to get his mind off of the situation but nothing he tried could tell him otherwise 'This will...not end well'.

With the next howl of the wind Humphrey got into a leaping position, trying his best not to strain his leg just yet.

A moment passed while he lowered himself to the wet ground, rain water fell cooling his body, sending a chill down his spine and stinging his sensitive foreleg. 'You can do this' he muttered to himself, as low as his confidence and morale were he still had to try to see things through .

With the crack of lightning he forced all the energy he had into his legs. An immense and unbelievable pain worked its way through his body in an instant. Every part of his leg felt as if it were on fire, but he could see over the top of the field.

Everywhere was blurred because of the rain, and he felt himself wrenching his eyes shut from the reactionary pain in his paw. 'No...not yet... just a second longer' everything around him blurred as eh fell back down.

Just before his head disappeared below the the canopy of the field a bright flash illuminated the area. In the corner of his eye he could make out a small standing form. 'I'm close to it' In his mind he danced with glee, finally able to see even a glimpse of hope from this terrible storm.

But all too late he realized he hadn't touched the ground yet. Mentally preparing himself for the impact a sharp gust of wind had turned him slightly. He landed on his hind legs, but still managed to fall onto his left side.

Every part of his body screamed in unison at the feeling he got when he made contact with the ground. He burst into tears and rolled onto his back to relieve some of the harsh impact, the damage, however was done.

"AAAAHHHHHH..." he yelled with his voice being carried throughout into nothingness. Nothing he had ever had done to himself before ever felt as terrible as this.

A flash of lightning ran through the sky, brighter and closer than before. He didn't know how, but he managed to make it to his feet, keeping his weak limb suspended.

Without hesitation he fled into the direction of the tree he hoped he saw. The expression on his face blank, a terrible felling of nausea, and undeniably cold he pressed on. Every step helped him to clear his thoughts. He shivered and limped cutting through the thick stalks and thin blades "w..w-hat..w..as..t-t-hat"

The storm nipping at his heels and and shelter weren't the only thing bothering him now. Something worse was happening to him but he couldn't stop now. In the deepest parts of his thoughts, one word came to mind...shock.

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**Hmm... Well... oww...thats a terrible place to be in... anyone that's ever been in shock... yea... bad times... I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing. Shout outs to 2 stories (Garth's Story by Humphrey Loves Kate) & (Lilly Saves the Day by Gordon Pasha) Seriously great reads... If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M.. Be sure to vote on my profile page (it makes more ideas come to life faster)... Till next time I'm DLW.**


	9. Pt1 Ch1 Ep2

**Its been two whole days since the last time I posted... I've been busy okay? anywho, This is Episode 2 of chapter one Part 1. Say that three times backwards and get a prize! Seriously there... may (emphasis on the word may) be prizes. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Grounded:**

Humphrey was still on the move. Dazed and confused as he was he continued to cut through the maze. His rain soaked fur weighed him down, the sheer force of the wind had caused the air to cool.

Exhaustion was setting in, and cold wet fur didn't help 'Please let this be a decent place to stay'.

Vicious winds continued to thrash over the field, but he knew he was close. 'The tree is just through here' He had to keep telling himself that to not loose hope. That was about the only thing he had left now.

What would have been accomplished in minuets became longer than he had originally planned. Though that accident was solely his fault 'If I paid attention when landing this wouldn't have happened'.

He headed for the hill he saw his temporary shelter on. Freezing, shivering, hurt and traumatized he still pressed on.

The terrain became increasingly uneven where there had once been flatland.

With every step he felt weaker, barely keep his head up, with the rain pouring, and the wind in his face.

Bracing himself against the elements he paced forward on his three working limbs 'Just a few more steps'.

He couldn't keep his eyes open much with all that was happening. Rain water fell into his eyes every time he looked up.

The ground had become drenched and had caused puddles on the ground.

'Ugh... I should have been there by now' he splashed mud and water with every step he took.

Everything looked and felt the same no matter where he turned 'I was heading in a straight path, it should be here'. He had to rest, but he had to survive.

Slowing in his pace Humphrey carefully treaded the area. Hearing a crack of thunder behind him he wrenched his eyes shut and continued to walk.

'WHERE IS IT' he mentally yelled. He was in pain and tired of having to walk. Frustrated and cold 'where...' he felt something else.

Deep sorrow filled him. Was he lost again? Why did all of this happen to him like this? When will it end?

In his haze and being unable to see in the storm he blindly splashed into a small puddle. With all three limbs deep in water he searched for even ground.

'Come on...come on...' thinking that he was just one step away he carelessly stepped forward.

His working forepaw came splashing down into a deep hole. The rest of him came crashing down with it.

"Ah-cah... ag" Humphrey thrashed around in the puddle. Swallowing some of the murky water and tossing mud in all directions he crawled out on his belly.

He strained to keep himself on the cool wet grass. Making it several feet away he just collapsed.

He was a mess, his once proud grey fur caked over with mud. His eyes constantly pelted by rain and wind. His sprained paw had ben used to crawl out, but he only now felt it.

"This whole experience has been horrible", and indeed for him it had.

He could do nothing about the situation he was in now 'This was all for nothing, and thats what I get for it'.

There was nothing left for him. He curled himself into a ball, giving up on the whole thing. He didn't care, he had nothing left to lose 'Survival...who was I kidding'.

Hope for him was nothing more than a distant effort that ended in sorrow.

He remembered everything he could have done 'Everything that happened to me could have been avoided'.

If he payed attention to his landing he wouldn't have been hurt. If he didn't have emotional stress he would have found shelter.

If he didn't stay on the train for a food he would have had more time to scout the area. 'I can't get the day back...I can't get anything back now'

He felt even weaker, whatever he had caught at the river was setting in 'I heard things could always get worse'.

Slowly he closed his eyes, even the thunder and flashes behind him didn't matter anymore 'So much for shelter'.

Feeling the cool clean rain falling down and running through his fur he felt a little at ease "I guess its true, the grass isn't always greener on the other side".

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**AAANnnddd... thats it for this Ep. He's not dead, he's just... not active? More to come sooner or later. I'm gonna come out with a new story soon, hopefully. If i find the time to write that and... 5 other stories then yea. If it helps I have a schedule posted that I try to stick to. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M.. Be sure to vote on my profile page (it makes more ideas come to life faster)... Till next time I'm DLW.**


	10. Pt1 Ch1 Ep3

**AHA I found you story... what's that? You weren't lost? really now? And I'm supposed to believe that? ha. Moving on This is ep... lemme check ...Ep3 of Ch1 of Pt 1. Gonna be a decent series from what I have planned out. Ps this was supposed to end different, but I feel that from the original this turned out better. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Rooted:**

Humphrey had laid there for what seemed days now. He was barely able to stay even partially awake, the wind had made the mud and water in his fur even cooler.

Being able to do nothing but lay in the wet grass didn't help either. 'So...tired...so...' From the state he was in even his core body temperature had lowered.

Though he had curled into a ball helping just a but to stay warm. But in truth it wasn't very effective, warmth was something his body could no longer accomplish.

Being on his last limb wasn't doing very well for him. The storm blew on, but he heard something out of the ordinary. Very faintly, the rustle of grass near him didn't move along with the wind.

'Aha ... found...' Humphrey felt something brushing against his side. He could barely hear what this strange voice said, some of the mud he slung around earlier ended up slipping into his ears.

'Wait...not...' The voice reached him more and more. Clearly female it soft and calm even in the thick of the storm.

He couldn't even respond, he felt too tired and the piercing cold made forced him to curl tighter.

'Are...still...' Humphrey felt something bumping his side. He shivered slightly pulling away from the the foreign touch.

'...cold...you' If he could have even so much as nodded he would have. It seemed as though someone were there, and hopefully to help him.

After a moment of a pause he again felt a pressure on his side. It stayed there for a moment, moving only with the rise and fall of his breath.

"Thank...we...to...you..safety'. 'Safety' he thought, in all that he had been through someone was actually here. Despite his failed strength he managed to find the energy to wag his tail slightly in the prospect of renewed hope.

'hmhmh' the stranger began to giggle. He didn't know weather to want to just give up, but all his effort was on trying to stay awake at this point.

'Alright... move...to...hill' she said reassuringly. Humphrey remembered he was heading to the nearby hill. He felt the stranger tug on the scruff of his mane and start to pull.

Tighter and tighter her grip locked onto him, and suddenly he felt himself beginning to move.

'Wow...heavy' her muffled voice barely got through to him. Slight splashes of water came from the ground where the unknown figure dragged him. He felt the slight cool and sting of water and grass below him.

'She's helping me' he thought. Humphrey felt more at ease, but still he was too tired to move, let alone open his eyes.

Upon getting several feet away they stopped. Humphrey was worried 'Maybe she took me out farther this thought caused him some panic 'please... please don't leave me here'.

He tried to open his eyes but still couldn't find the strength, he was at the mercy of the stranger.

'Gotta...*huff...you...*huff*...hill' much to his relief she was just taking a moment of a rest. He heard her panting hard and was thankful for her kind effort.

'AAh' she yelled about something. 'What was that' he thought, he was close enough to her to feel her shaking for some reason. 'Waaa' he felt a weight on his shoulder, followed by a renewed severe pain.

She quickly got up to her feet, pushing off of Humphrey and finding her balance . Taking a moment to compose herself she had to apologize "Oh, I'm sorry, I get kinda scared when lightni-, Oh my gosh are you alright".

Humphrey was out cold. After the shock earlier, the stress, and her falling over his injured limb, he was finally out.

"Wow, how did I not see this before" She touched Humphrey's paw causing him to wince and curl into a tight ball again.

She looked up towards the hill 'Its bad alright'. Looking back down she gently rubbed Humphrey's injured shoulder 'but with some time he'll heal'.

"Guess the rain covered it, I'll get you patched up in a bit" Carefully she went around to his scruff again and pulled him back 'Whatever I do I have to hurry'.

Humphrey didn't so much as move as he was being dragged up the small incline 'They'll be looking for me in the morning'.

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**There and done. This is the part where I usually go off on some random tangent, but not this time. ****Shout outs to**

** (Garth's Story by Humphrey Loves Kate) its completed and epic**

**Also**

** (Lilly Saves the Day and Only Wolves and Madmen by Gordon Pasha) Seriously one funny writer**

**Lastly (this is the first time this whole section wasn't one paragraph) I have recently found out that Arashi No Yoru Ni (One Stormy Night) has an animated series. Its called Arashi no Yoru Ni: Himitsu no Tomodachi (One Stormy Night: Secret Friends) Plot stays the same for the most part (the book is more accurate than the movie), but its more of a comical aspect with creative liberties (my head almost exploded from the drama)...**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M.. Be sure to vote on my profile page for what story you wantdone (it makes more ideas come to life faster)... Till next time I'm DLW.**


	11. Pt1 Ch1 Ep4

**First off Thanks to all who took the time to review, and support this story. Know that there will be more. I hope you enjoy this episode. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Sapling:**

'Wow guy, you're even heavier when you're asleep' This was about the third time in the small journey that she found herself winded. What would have been a quick trip to the top of the hill turned into an arduous uphill struggle.

Gaining her grip on the wet grass and tugging the unconscious wolf with her she neared the top.

'Just gotta reach the top and we'll be okay' She had to focus, a fellow wolf's life was on the line. "He's ... *ragh*... lucky I found him there"

Humphrey was bruised, battered, broken and thankfully asleep.

Climbing up the rough hill she had a few close calls, but was moving along at a descent pace.

Step by slippery step she could feel the ground change from wet grass to a rough dirt setting 'Almost... almost...*oof*'

She hadn't looked very carefully. Humphrey's head bumped against a tree root sticking out of the ground.

She realized her mistake a bit late and had let loosened her grip on his scruff 'Uh-ho'.

Humphrey slipped out of her mouth and fell to the ground. His head bumped against the root slightly.

"I'M SORRY I'M SORRY" she shouted, panicked and jumping to his side hoping that he was alright despite her mistake.

Moving around to see her mud and grime covered patient she grimaced at the result.

His face contorted and his mouth hung agape. Her paws managed to find her mouth in shock "I think I made it worse".

"What do I do" She stood there for a moment longer still shocked. She lowered herself to the ground shakily "Stay calm ... stay-'.

She didn't know weather it was from the rain or her, but she felt her eyes become wet "I...I can't loose anyone else like this".

"Ugghh...my-heaaadddd" Humphrey whispered in pain. Shifting around still knocked out he moved his head away from the root and bumped his nose against her paw.

She took a step back, being thankful he was okay she wiped her eyes with the back of her paw. "He's alright" she shouted with glee jumping over him once more and getting back to her former task.

" I won't fail this time" Aiming for the thick part of his scruff she leaned down and got a firm grasp with her teeth.

With a new effort she tugged as hard as she could and pulled him up the incline. Taking her time and firmly planting each step she found a stable path to climb. She turned her head slightly while still holding tightly checking carefully for roots and rocks in the way.

Nodding when she saw she was clear she tugged as hard as she could bringing them to the base of the tree. 'Finally here' happy with herself she let go of Humphrey carefully.

She looked down at him resting peacefully "He doesn't look that dangerous, I wonder". Looking at the downtrodden wolf she noticed that his eyes were shut and covered in a thick coat of dirty water.

"I'll start with this" leaning down she moved close to his eyes. Just before she was about to try to remove the dirt she hesitated. There was so much that could go wrong from her helping a complete stranger 'I know what they said...But... I was also told to help someone in need.

With her conscious clear she looked down at her paws. The wet grass she had walked in earlier had done a good job at cleaning them, but she had to be sure. She lifted a paw to her muzzle and did her best to lick away whatever dirt or debris may be there still.

"That should be good" Satisfied with the results she looked down and carefully but quickly licked away the filth from his eyes.

When she was done he started moving some, twitching his eyes and seeming to smirk. 'Must be ticklish there' she thought Now lets see".

Taking her cleaned paw she reached out towards his eyes. Mere inches away her heart started beating faster and she started to breathe heavy. She was nervous to say the least, but she had to know.

She placed her paw on on his brow and carefully opened his eyelid. In the pale light of the sky even through the overcast she could see what she was hoping for "Oh wow" she smiled "T-they're blue".

She was stunned "I've never seen a wolf like this before, he...he can't be as dangerous as mom said". No-matter what she tried to think of she couldn't take her eyes off of of Humphrey.

Lightning flashed in the background interrupting her momentary daze. Shaking her head she moved her paw off of Humphrey, shutting her off from her point of interest. Refocusing she looked up to the sky 'The rain's dying down'.

Tilting her head she saw that things were beginning to calm "Its almost night, I need a few things before I go on".

She lifted herself up and walked away from the small shelter, turning her head towards Humphrey before she left "Don't worry, I'll be right back"

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**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M.. Be sure to vote on my profile page (it makes more ideas come to life faster)... Till next time I'm gonna still hopefully possibly be DLW.**


	12. Pt1 Ch1 Ep5

**Thankiez are in order to all who read and reviewed, Much appreciated. Know that there will be more. I hope you enjoy this episode. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Synthesis:**

It was getting closer to night in the valley, the sun had all but faded away and the moon was on a steady rise over the horizon.

'The storm's dying out so this should be easy' She said to herself. 'Good thing too, I needed a little water for this' clicking her claws against several stray pebbles the wolf made her way up the incline of the hill.

Several blades of long grass were held in her mouth. Each drenched from the storm and neatly put together as best as she could.

After having taken multiple trips to gather enough materials for her 'guest' she felt as though she had everything needed 'I still can't believe he went through all that and is still asleep'.

Walking up to the and looking into what would a small den she looked over her shoulder slinging water to the cooled ground. The still night air and silent motions of the grassy plain served as a staple of blissful rest 'Okay, still nobody yet, I should be safe for now'.

Taking the time to shake herself free of any access water she prepared herself for how she would patch up the patient. 'So i have the grass, some sticks, a few stones, and a few vines' rehearsing the materials she had with her she walked into the den.

Humphrey lay fast asleep, and aside from his eyes he was still covered in mud.

'His eyes' she mumbled, still fascinated by the odd color. Bending down she set the grass next to him. All of what she brought with her lay in a small pile near the back.

"Now what was left" sitting next to Humphrey she went through everything one more time. "sticks, vine-" pointing to each one with her snout she gave her account for each item present "-ones, aaaannnnddd tree-sap".

Getting down to her last item she realized that was it *sigh* "Tree-sap always forget the tree-sap". Somewhat upset with herself she bent her head down in shame "Just like last time...its always the one thing I forget".

"Hau-...hm..annnn-" Humphrey turned his head shaking in his sleep startling her a bit.

"Oh..." she panted, having a moment of fright "Its just him...just-". She could feel her heart racing from the sudden jolt, but in spite of that her eyes never left him.

'He's not scary, I just need to pay attention more' calming down a bit she looked around some.

"Just need some tree-sap and we're good to go" everything other item she needed was close by, however "Wheres a good tree to get anything from".

Sitting next to Humphrey she thought of the closest place she could find 'I haven't had to use any of the stuff since we got here, but where can I find it easily'.

Unable to sit and think she carefully rose and quietly paced around the enclosed den "No, the river wouldn't have it this time of the year, and besides its dangerous on the other side".

She had to think of a way "No no no going back is even worse, I may get caught and if that happens..." that idea seemed even worse than the first so she shook it clear from her thoughts.

Enough light was able to break through the small space, but she was too deep in thought to see where she walked until *snap*.

Her eyes went wide, slowly looking down she feared what she had stepped on. Bracing herself for the result she was relieved when she merely stepped on one of the sticks she carried in earlier.

Looking up with her eyes closed and breathing in deeply she let loose a sigh of relief. Thankful even more that she didn't slip up a third time this night.

'But what about the sap, I can't do this without it' Her head held high she slowly opened her eyes once more. "Hmm..." She found her nose was touching some of the stray roots at the bottom of the tree the den had been situated under.

"What's this" Carefully she pulled her head down, a cool wet tingle stuck to the top of the tip of her nose.

Awkwardly she looked at what it was. Turning her head to the entrance of the den it was thick, deep orange. With every breath she took the substance had a very potent plant like aroma.

"Tree-sap" she questioned. She looked up in disbelief at what she found just above her "B-but this tree is dead, it can't still have sap...can it".

In the moonlight of the den she could make out several roots embedded in the ceiling near the back. "They were here all along then" glancing over at the sleeping wolf she knew everything would be okay then.

Using the back wall as a support and standing mostly on her hind legs she reached up as far as she could "Just gotta get a good one". Poking around at several roots she found one that was relatively soft in texture "Found you".

Grasping it in her teeth she bit the root a few times to ensure that she would be able to pull at it in one go. Once she was sure that she did well in loosening it she grabbed it tightly with her jaws and yanked on the root.

"Come on... stubborn root" This proved more difficult than she had originally thought. With a few more tugs she managed to pry it from the underbelly of the tree, loosening some of the dirt the root was planted in narrowly avoiding her eyes.

'Finally got it' panting in victory she lowered herself from the wall, careful not to wake the sleeper, or misplace a step as she did before.

'Now to put this over here' setting the piece down she found that root even severed from the tree had a strong taste of the sap she had been so happy to find.

"Looks like thats everything" she said with glee turning to her unassuming subject. Still and quiet she looked straight at his eyes, though closed she could tell there was an amazing story behind them "Once we get done here, maybe...".

In pure joy she turned to the den entrance giggling slightly, though cautious not to wake him. The moon shimmered brightly in the background, consoling her fears "Maybe I can convince them to let you come with us"

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**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M.. Be sure to vote on my profile page (it makes more ideas come to life faster)... Till next time I'm gonna still hopefully possibly be DLW.**


	13. Pt1 Ch1 Ep6

**Thankiez are in order to all who read and reviewed, Much appreciated. Know that there will be more. I hope you enjoy this episode. Chapter 2... soon...very soon. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Mending:**

She had been staring at the moon for longer than she could remember, its crescent reflecting in her eyes made every breath more relaxing and easing to her mind than the last.

"I wish things could stay like this" her eyes never left the sight "though as tranquil as things are to be there's still work to be done".

She turned to the back of the den where Humphrey lay steadfastly asleep. She had wanted to continue moon-watching, but his well being was a priority.

"Hmmm... lets see" she strode over to him, watching him twitch and which his tail across the floor in small cones.

Upon reaching him she sat and looked over him. Some of the mud he had fell in had dried to his fur, and though he was curled into a tight ball he didn't rest on his injured paw.

Seeing him covered in filth like this made her a but upset at herself, but thankfully no further illness set in because of it yet.

She peered across the dim room where she set all her gathered items earlier. The den was growing dark, but the moonlight crept into their abode was just enough to make outlines of what she needed.

Turning back to see the moon on the rise she got up and moved towards her tools "Alright, I just have to get done before we loose light".

"First things first" she said reaching down for the bushel of wet grass she picked out from the field earlier "we have to get you cleaned up".

Picking up root ends of the grass with her sharp canines she padded back to Humphrey.

She realized something about her plan 'This mud has to go, but I can't let him sleep on his bad arm'.

With time running short and him asleep, she had only one option 'I have... to roll him over'. She cringed at the though of injuring him further, but she had no choice at this point.

Walking around him she set the grass down once more. She sighed knowing what she was about to do "I'm really sorry about this".

Leaning down she placed her paws on his side. She wasn't surprised that he moved around a little, breathing heavier for a moment and then sustaining an even pace.

He felt slightly cold and she could feel the dirt and tangles in his fur instantly. 'This has to be done' she thought and braced herself, catching one last glimpse at the wolf's sleeping form.

"I'm sorry" pushing on his chest she started to roll him onto his other side. "Ugh... you're... still... heavy" she strained to even so much as flip the wolf onto his back.

Humphrey on the other hand seemed reluctant to move despite the saving effort.

Her hind paws tore through the dirt in an attempt to gain leverage. 'Come on... roll..." she struggled for a moment or two before feeling that he was slowly moving the way she needed.

Moments passed and with increased effort in her pushing finally he gave way and rolled onto his back.

"Good, now just to, NO WAIT" She had pushed just a bit too hard. She tried to catch him and ease him down to the other side, but was too late to stop him from falling too fast.

*YELP* Humphrey rolled onto his side with the injured paw. Though asleep he still felt the pain,writhing and shivering on the floor.

"What should I do" she panicked, thinking of a way to ease his pain. An idea came to her "I wonder, could that work". She pondered for a moment and looked over him, still shaking from the pain "Well it worked for me before".

'Mom used to do this for me and I fell back asleep so just maybe' She turned and picked up the wet grass once more and leaned over him, his face contorted with pain as he shivered 'Hope this works'. She began to hum 'Now how did that song go again...lalala... hmmhmhm.. there's the rhythm'.

Taking some of the wet grass she rubbed it against Humphrey's side moistening his fur and loosening the dirt. She took her paws and started to rub and wipe the dirt away.

Though seeing him in pain did nothing but make her feel less at ease she had only one possible remedy. She leaned down to his ear whispered "Here's a song my mother used to sing to me".

**"Let me sing you a song, to the ever coming dawn"**

**"It tells of a tale long and old"**

**"'Tis a song of the night to remove all of your fright"**

**"For there is a light here to guide you"**

**"Let these words touch your ears that you hear them very clear"**

**"And your fears will all be behind you"**

Little by little she used the water to loosen and then remove the dirt heavily caked into his fur. Combing through it and loosening knots with her claws as carefully as she could, and not putting much pressure or strain on him.

His matted and dingy fur was beginning to come back to life. Once done she took some of the grass she had and placed just behind his back.

'Okay this side's done, he looks more at ease, gotta flip him over'. She carefully went around him and repeated the process of moving him.

Thankfully he didn't twitch or show any signs of pain, just steady even breathing.

It took less effort to move him this time, and carefully she moved him on top of the grass 'Now this side' Taking some of the spare wet grass she smoothed it over his fur, cautious of his injured arm, she continued to sing.

**"Now my child close your eyes as I sing this lullaby"**

**"A song you may remember"**

**"Through our lives we find strife while we reach for paradise"**

**"But at times it may seem never ending"**

**"In the night we look high, we look up into the sky" **

**"Patiently awaiting a promise"**

**"When we see that there's light to chase darkness out of sight"**

**"We can see that all will be well"**

'There, he looks a lot better' She looked over his fur once more. The brownish-orange that had once taken over now looked as shades rich shades of light and dark grey. Matted fur from ears to tail maintained and cleaner, shimmered graciously in the pale light.

'I didn't find any other cuts or scrapes on him, but I've still gotta patch that arm' agreeing with her thoughts she picked up the sticks she brought in and placed them by his side.

Soon after she got the vines and the stones and sat beside him. "Almost done" she reached down and touched his paw causing him to flinch. She had to finish helping him or else he could get hurt more 'I can't quit now'.

**"Please don't hide, dread not I'll be there to carry you with me"**

**"I'll walk with you through the dark, as you hear this precious song"**

**"It dances and whispers in the wind"**

**"I'll shelter you through the night, to open your eyes to light"**

**"Please don't cry, fear not I'll be right here by your side"**

Soothing him once more she took his paw and stretched it out just a little, placing it on the vines. She placed a flat stone on the top of his paw and two sturdy sticks by the side.

As carefully as she could she took each vine end and laced them together, binding them steadily and ensuring a firm tie. She took the root she had gathered from the tree sitting above her and bit into it, causing the sap to slowly ooze from each end. After applying the sap to the vines she smeared and smoothed it over the laces of vine 'This just has to harden now'. 'There, good as new' taking a step back she admired her work.

Humphrey lay fast asleep, his fur was clean again, and his leg was in a strong enough cast to support him without much strain.

Taking a moment to breathe she looked out the den entrance and saw that the moon was fading from view. '

Must be just above us now' she looked around and saw that light only went far enough into the den to reach her recovering and still unknown guest.

In spite of that she was still happy to have helped him "Now what were the rest of the verses".

**"Soon you'll be once again with me, but my dear don't you cry"**

**"Throughout your life you may feel down though sometimes"**

**"Remember I'll be there for you if you just sing this song"**

Her words echoed across the den, soothing herself, and making her feel tired "Well...must be later than I thought". Quietly she paced over towards Humphrey and stood above him for a moment.

She felt happy that she could help, but she still didn't know anything about him. "I don't think you're scary" she whispered to herself "I just hope that you'll prove them wrong".

Through the still of the den she found it slightly cold and, and losing moonlight she decided now was the best time to sleep. "I wonder if..." placing her paw on him she found his fur cool to the touch and he himself felt colder than usual.

Even in the darkness a warm smile grew on her muzzle "Well there's my answer". She sat beside him and rolled next to his back, her paws slung around his neck and she curled next to him "Gotta keep you warm".

Closing her eyes she she felt him move slightly, getting closer to her for warmth. With that she giggled with glee, in the darkened den. One last thought entered her mind, yawning as sleep slowly took over 'I still have to finish the song'.

**"Just close your eyes and look up high"**

**"Into the sky the stars will dance along"**

**"They'll sing with you, the promise you were given from on high"**

**"It will shimmer and shine with your heart in the light"**

**"The Moons Lullaby"**

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**If you liked the poem and want a link P.M. me (Yes I did make the poem). New poll is out, ends 7/27/2012. Be sure to vote on what comes out next. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	14. Pt1 Ch1 End

**Thankiez are in order to all who read and reviewed. After this chapter the next update will be 08/04/2012 as I need to finish my other story. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

**:Renewal:**

A warm air gently wafted through the den, bringing with it the smell of morning dew. The two wolves still lay asleep as the sun began to crown over the valley. Vast arrays of gold and orange set over the fields welcoming all into the new dawn.

Quiet shifts and unmistakable breaths were the only noises that they made while deep in their slumber.

Humphrey during his sleep moved closer and closer to the warmth he felt. He hadn't moved much more than his head, but even that was enough to keep him from freezing.

'Mmmm' the wolf that had made her bedding out of his mane had finally begun to stir. Opening her eyes and adjusting them to a vibrant orange light just beyond the den.

She yawned slightly while trying to sit up and shake the feeling of sleep off of her. 'What's this…' she had an awkward feeling that her paws rested on something other than the dirt.

"Oh… right" she said carefully and quietly as not to wake her guest so quickly. As gently as she could she removed her paws and stepped back a few paces to stretch.

Humphrey whined a bit, nudging his head to find any trace of warmth. "Sorry" she said tilting her head down a little feeling guilty. But when she turned to see that it was already morning she knew she had to keep moving.

"Okay let me just check one thing" she muttered to herself and walked around him. She leaned down to examinee the cast she had made earlier in the night.

"Just have to test one thing" she lifted her paw pressed down on his for just a moment causing Humphrey to pull his paw back. Breathing a breath of relief she sat back down "Okay, the sap's hardened, and it looks like it isn't as painful".

She smiled seeing him still lay there. Soon she would be able to talk to him and find out something about him. Soon she would be able to take him with her. Soon she should be-.

Her ear twitched to something moving outside. It sounded like it was coming from the grass field. It sounded big, and it was coming to them fast.

Shaking herself she refocussed on what she should do. She had an wolf she had to take care of, but she could only hope whatever was making all the sound was friendly.

With her heart racing and knowing that she could be in trouble she leaned down to Humphrey's ear.

"I have to leave now" she said softly though still panicking "They're probably looking for me and I-" she heard a rustle from outside and looked over her shoulder.

"Where is that girl, we've been out all morning" a voice called out from just beyond the lines of grass. "Well we're not to stop until she's back, who knows what might happen to us" another voice called back.

She had to hurry, she didn't want him in danger, but she had to give him something of a warning. "When you wake up please stay around here, and whatever you do Don't go near the river upstream" she stressed the last words and shivered at the meaning they held behind them.

Still outside she could hear them "I hate the grass, It always gets in my nose". "Well If you knew how to NAVIGATE we wouldn't be in this mess would we" she knew they were a bit too close.

She looked at the downed wolf one last time "Don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow". Turning back and facing the exit she whispered "I promise". Just a moment later she vanished into the outside.

Humphrey lay alone in the den, blissfully asleep as the sun warmed and brushed over his fur. He had a peaceful sleep, warm and laying on something soft. He was subconsciously thankful for whomever it was that took him in.

Soon though he felt a gentle nudge at his cheek. Something warm and slightly tickling his own nose. As much as he enjoyed his rest he felt himself being roused out of his deep slumber.

"Hmm…" he mumbled groggily struggling to adjust his eyes to the morning light. The figure that stood above him moved just to the entrance to his surprise was wolf. Though he was still tired and lacked the strength to move he noticed that the illuminated wolf looked familiar.

"k-Kate" he strained to speak out, twitching his legs and slowly wagging his tail in excitement for an answer. The wolf merely looked back with a warm smile before disappearing into the outside.

With her gone Humphrey still lay there, even more tired than he had before. Though he wanted to fight sleep and find whoever it was, he couldn't so much as lift his paws.

Yawning and looking at the brightly lit den entrance he decided it would be best to just rest for now. As he drifted off her words still rang fresh in his mind 'Cross the river'.

**End of Chapter 1 Greener Grass**

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**Poll for the new story is extended, ends midnight 08/08/2012. Be sure to vote on what comes out next. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	15. Ch2 The Alpha

**Welcome back readers. This is the start of chapter 2. Thankiez for all who read and reviewed. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**How the beginning started is a mystery to those who weren't witnesses**

Laying in the middle of the cave Humphrey slept peacefully. Curled unto a ball with his tail mere inches away from his nose. Steadily and evenly breathing while and resting on a soft bed of grass. The sun that snuck in warmed his fur, he was truly at ease.

Warm as he was it celt more comfortable and he subconsciously moved around to take full advantage of the sun's warmth.

In his search for warmth he moved his head closer to his paw and bumped his nose against something hard. As unusual for a texture of what it was he felt that it was surrounding his arm.

Humphrey was starting to rouse out of his deep sleep, curious as to what was there. Slowly opening one eye and twitching it at the sight of the bright light flooding through.

"WOW thats bright" He turned away from the light for a moment and placed his paw in front of his eyes to further shield him. Though he had shaded his eyes he couldn't help but notice how much effort it took to lift his paw. '

Why does this feel so heavy' It took more effort than usual to preform such a simple task, and with just enough light to he found out why.

Looking over his arm he found that it was weighed down by small sticks, some smooth stones, and wrapped in vines. "Did she do this" Humphrey was in awe at the work that was done.

His eyes glossed over the cast and saw that it was not only sturdy, but it also had a smooth and hardened surface on it. "Who was that last night" It was clear to him that she was good at what she did, but for her to shelter him…

He felt his heart skip a beat at the thought of her. She was kind enough to take him in, she was caring enough to clean his fur, and she was skilled enough to help him heal. Most of all when he finally saw her, that warm smile "kate… NO, that wasn't her… was it".

Shaking the thought out of his head he looked around. "So this must be hers huh" he lazily looked around the den.

The area was well kept, large enough for several wolves his size. "But where's here" he questioned and looked up to find a dense ceiling filled with roots in almost every direction.

'Not too bad for a den' finishing his sight seeing he saw the entrance of the den just several feet away. It was warm where he was, and it was quiet, but there was nothing like fresh air to make him feel better.

"Alright, just gonna take a look around" Humphrey positioned himself so he was resting with all four limbs flat on the ground. Mentally counting to three he pushed himself off feeling pain in his injured forepaw.

"Ah that stung" feeling that he still wasn't ready to put any effort into walking on it he lifted his paw and held it close to his side. It was a little heavier than he could ask for, but at least this way he didn't feel it much.

On three limbs again he looked towards the den entrance. "Wow, I definitely overslept" It was bright and he could clearly see the green field he had so much trouble with before.

Deciding that it was time to move on he hopped and hobbled his way out. 'Whoever that was did a descent job at this, gotta thank them' he had to admit that despite the cast being heavy it served well in keeping his paw stable.

Upon leaving the den he was met with the familiar sight of the field and a very gracious breeze. Taking a moment to get a better grasp of where he was he sat just outside, carefully lowering his casted limb and peering in all directions.

Looking around he saw many thongs he didn't notice before. He was stunned and baffled from knowing where he sat "I was this close".

The tree he had seen from the field the night before was where he was now. Judging by what he remembered it was much further, but now that he was here he knew he was only several meters away at best.

He rose a paw to his muzzle in humiliation and disgust from his failed attempt to push through. Unfortunately the paw he rose was the one he was using as support. "AH… aaahhh" As quickly as he could he corrected his mistake and stabilized himself before falling over.

"Okay, not the best time to do sulk" he said, trying to lighten his own mood. He wasn't upset by any means, but still somewhat sore from the fall, and still feeling both loneliness and longing for something he couldn't understand.

He sat there for a moment longer still enjoying the scene. It was calm and relaxing, just the thing he needed to help clear his mind. "Well one things for sure I-" Humphrey felt a rumbling in his stomach.

He was slightly embarrassed at the sound. "Unbelievable…The last time I ate was…" he thought back to his trip, the pain, the running, the train. "The train… that was… a very dangerous snack" even at the mention of food he felt his mouth begin to water.

"Yeah, I need something to eat but where" Humphrey had to think, but even in that he knew things wouldn't go well. He was an omega, trained to keep the peace of the packs, but what pack did he have?

He was their omega leader, but he left, he had no training in how to hunt. He had to think of what to eat, but his choices were limited "Well… theres…. theres FISH".

Of course, there was fish he could still do that couldn't he? He had seen other wolves do that so he could try couldn't he 'Yeah… how hard could it be'.

It was settled he had to find the river though, and he remembered her telling him 'upstream'. "Well that'd be where a good spot is, now wheres that river… AHA" Just further away from the field he saw the river flowing proudly.

The field though rather large was tapered near the end, and his eyes quickly traced from one end to the other finding a good path. From what he could tell by the incline all he had to do was follow it just little until he reached a good area.

"Well here goes" he rose to his three limbs once more and began to hobble down the hill. "Not as steep as I thought" he said easing his way carefully down the slope. Reaching the bottom and facing the green wall once more he smiled.

Everything was much brighter, even in the field he remembered so darkly. The wolf that came to help him he wanted to thank her for saving his life. There was also that song that she sang to help sooth him.

He carefully walked into the field knowing which direction he wanted to go this time "That was a beautiful song, now how'd it go".

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**Poll for the new story ends midnight 08/08/2012. Be sure to vote on what comes out next. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	16. Pt1 Ch2 Ep1

**Hey readers. Thankiez for all who read and reviewed. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Scent of the Prey:**

"That was soooo much easier than last time" Humphrey smiled as he walked out of the grassy plain. He had planned his course and made it through with ease this time, not straying and falling to his once foe like maze.

Sitting a few feet away and turning to see where he was and the plains behind him he laughed "Ha… wow, even with the cast on I beat my old record".

He could't help but smile when a gentle breeze whisked by and made the tall grass flutter, rustling every now and then. It was almost as if it were waving goodbye, or inviting him back for a round two.

Still with a wide grin he tilted his head up towards the open sky "Hah… thanks for the invite…but I think I'll pass for now".

With his eyes to the sky he saw how beautiful it was. The storm had passed since last night and it was mostly clear. Bright blue in all directions with the only clouds in view looming over a mountain. "Okay so its about…" Looking around he saw his shadow cast on the ground with the sun hanging just overhead "Noon".

He sat there and sighed, it was peaceful, but rather quiet from what he was used to. The calm silence broken by the constant trickle of the stream was just enough to keep him his mind occupied.

Shifting his eyes to and from from the flowing water he thought back to what he heard her say 'River'.

Humphrey knew that this was too small of a body of water to be what she said of it "River…huh".

He brushed his tail back and forth making small thumps on the ground as he thought of what he should do. He remembered the 'Cross the River' part, however, where would she be? Was the place they were in not safe? Just the best of a bad situation? And more importantly why did she leave?

He shuddered at the thought "Maybe she was just… I donno… protecting me". He felt a twinge of regret shoot through him. If she was protecting him from something then what or who could it be.

Before he could even come up with an answer he heard a low grumbling sound and a sudden emptiness in him. He laughed a bit at this remembering his first goal "Well Humphrey you heard it, time to go".

Lifting himself back up he took one last chance to look back at the grass field. He had no idea where the wolf that rescued him went, but she had to have come this way at some point if she said river.

Humphrey turned and walked back to the stream he was at the previous day. Just as he remembered it calm and even flowing and where he got sick in the first place.

Walking up to the edge of it he found that it was a bit murkier than he had remembered. Deep shadows swam along the bottom in scattered random paths "Well this can't be that hard".

Slowly and carefully he walked to the shallow part of the stream. His three good limbs supporting felt awkward when he took a step forward. Each step feeling both the cool of the water, and soft earth below him. His injured paw, in an attempt to keep it from further harm barely touched the surface.

"Alright… so I just reach out and get one" Humphrey prepared himself for an easy meal. Several small shadows in the water appeared next to him. He took a deep breath and prepared to strike.

Just before his head could reach the water the fish swam away. He sighed only to have more shadows swim next to him again.

"This time" He got a bit closer and once again attempted to strike. He had latched onto something just below the surface. It was long, thin, and rather tough from what he could tell. 'YES, GOT ONE' he yelled out in his mind asn he tried to pull his catch to the surface.

Though try as he might he was unable to simply pull his prey to the surface. Whatever it was it was just too heavy, refusing to be the wolf's meal. Humphrey let go of it and pulled his head out of the water, slightly gasping for breath.

"What did I hit" he was confused. He saw the fish right there around him, he couldn't have missed, could he?

Still curious as to what it was he looked at the waters surface at where he had struck. The murky water around the area had cleared just a bit and he could see what it was.

"A stick… I bit a stick…" He was upset at what he thought was food. Even fishing was harder for him than he thought.

"Well… maybe I just need to try somewhere else, can't be technique" looking further upstream he hoped he was right. He didn't want to starve so he would have to find something.

"Okay so the river flows to there from…" he looked at the flow of the water. It went up and down the line of a bank parting the forest with the grass plain. Looking further down he could see that the water flowed from where he had seen the mountains in the distance "Ah… there we go".

With his goals in mind he picked himself up once more, shaking off some of the muddy water he had soaked himself in. Once he took a step headed into the direction of the source of the stream he heard the grass waving one last time to him 'I'll be back soon enough'.

He had to cheer himself up a bit or else he would feel like he did before "A source of water is good for food as well". But even with this thought he knew that there would also be potential dangers.

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***Last chance to vote* Poll for the new story ends midnight 08/08/2012. Be sure to vote on what comes out next. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	17. Pt1 Ch2 Ep2

**Hey readers, ben a while since the last update so here it is. Thankiez for all who read and reviewed. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:A Scouts Mission:**

Humphrey had trekked for about a two miles now. It was just passed the afternoon and the sun was still high.

He moved at a rather brisk pace despite his cast and the slightly hot weather.

'I'm glad I decided to stick close to the river,' he thought.

As he followed the water upstream the land began to change. What used to be a well laid and lush grassy plain became a mass of various trees just up ahead with the stream increasing in size.

"Good I think I'm close." Humphrey said smiling to himself.

It had been a rather long day and he was finally glad to see the fruits of his progress.

The mountain was much closer to him and the forest was just on the other side of the widening stream. He looked up a bit further and saw that the water flowed from a higher ledge.

"I better cross now" He said wandering closer to the waters. The bank of the stream he stood on was dryer than he had expected.

Light specks of mud just barely deep enough for him to set his paws in seemed more welcoming than the mud hole he had come from.

The other side was a bit muddier in appearance and had a small slope. To him it would prove a challenge.

He looked over the small flow and saw how incredibly clear it was at the bottom. Though not particularly good for catching anything it was much safer to go from there.

Though when he looked up the grey mass looming over the mountains had done much to keep his worries at the forefront of his mind "I won't get much of a chance later."

Humphrey dipped his good paw into the waters just testing to see if it was too deep or too unstable.

"It's not bad" he muttered. The stream may have been wide but he found that it was only several inches to the bottom at best.

'This shouldn't be too hard,' He smiled and ran his paw across the surface of the waters, soaking it and preparing himself the first step as he crossed into the unknown lands.

Taking the initial step into the stream helped ease his fears of what lied in wait for him. Soon after he felt his hind legs keeping up with his mind.

'So just to get over there and then what?' He splashed and sloshed his way through the shallow water keeping his casted paw in check and above the surface.

"For a wolf with three paws I'm not doing too bad" He reminded himself. It wasn't too hard for him to walk through the waters, but without the use of all of his legs it took longer than he had wanted.

"Almost there, but what do I do afterwards" He neared the other side of the waters, thankful that what he had been through before was only a sprain in one leg.

Upon reaching the other side he gracefully planted his paw on the ground. It was muddier than what he had experienced from before. Almost clay like in texture.

"Well," he said disappointedly "There goes my easy time."

Calming himself he brought his paw out of the muck and rested it back in the waters. He had to think for a moment.

"Well, If I jump then." Remembering what he did last time to get him in this condition made him cringe at the even the mention of the thought.

"Not this time, but what can I do."

He was in an okay place for now but he couldn't risk further hurting himself. Though sticky mud wasn't usually his worst obstacle it proved more hindering than what he had experienced before.

"I guess, I'll crawl?"

Looking up at the bank he thought it was the best thing to do. Taking a deep breath he lowered himself into the water, keeping his head above though he had to get his sprained paw wet it proved effective.

He crawled as best as he could feeling a slight stinging in his paw, but he braved through the pain and made it to the muddy shore.

"Okay, good so far, just over this hill." He looked up and saw that it was just a few feet away.

He picked himself up getting the mud and clay stuck to his underbelly and on his legs.

Focused on the task at hand he trekked up the slope. His paws were covered in the mud and he slipped several times but he was more determined now than he was before.

"There's gotta be a better way to get up there."

While true he didn't have all day. He had to go back soon, but with the delay he was having now it wouldn't be until the next day atleast.

"Hope this works." Humphrey gritted his teeth and dug his claws into the muck to gain better leverage.

It was an odd felling to him. The feeling of being that determined to go on. The last time he had this drive was when he rescued Kate.

"I'm not going through this again." Snapping himself away from the memory he forced himself to lift his legs and follow through. Each limb stuck in the mud was gradually freed and he felt only a slight pain in his bad foreleg.

He repeated this slow process several times, each step bringing him closer. Each breath he felt more of the need to move on. Each pain in his leg a constant reminder of what he left behind.

Focusing on what he had ahead of him he inched forward until he felt his paws touch solid ground.

A look of confusion on his face was replaced with a wide grin.

Covered in mud from his neck down he looked to the sky and started laughing. "I made it," He gleefully panted "Ha, I did it."

For the first time since he left he was doing things right for himself. He had come this far without help. He made it to the top without help.

He had gotten so excited that he had done something that he had forgotten what he was there for. Then the feeling of a recurring emptiness in his stomach crept up on him.

"Heh, guess I forgot." His stomach rumbled and he merely laughed. Being the only thing he had achieved so far he was happier than hungry.

With the sun just beginning to fall he stood up and looked towards the unknown new lands. He felt better about his journey, about himself, about leaving.

Though the sun would go down he kept his head high. Mud caked on him but he put what good legs he had to use "Now just to find some food and see what's up ahead."

* * *

**Took longer than I thought but expect a weekend update to this and other stories. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	18. Pt1 Ch2 Ep3

**Heyz I gotz new cover art for the story. Fits in perfectly as his line before the journey and title. Thankiez for all who read and reviewed. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Forgotten Territory:**

Humphrey had just made it from beyond the wide mouth of the stream and was well into the dense forest.

He hadn't traveled too far away from the water source just for direction. Though the further he went in the more he saw the water become faster and deeper as well.

Having not eaten in a significant meal since the previous day he was desperate to find something, anything to curb his hunger.

He wasn't a hunter, a fisher, or well much of anything aside from his rank.

It would be hard for him to get anything that wasn't already on its last limb, dead, or practically begging to be eaten for him to finally satisfy his hunger.

Humphrey had to keep moving on, the search for food was a crucial one. Even more so now that he had overcome a small ordeal.

Thick muck clung to his fur from his previous venture but he kept his focus on moving to where that girl had told him.

His cast had gotten soaked, but the mud had just caked onto it. The problem with it now was that it started to itch.

"So I crossed the river and got to the forest. Now what?" He sat and looked to and fro in every direction.

He idly tried scratching at the cast while searching for an appropriate direction.

There had to be somewhere that she wanted him to go. It was spacious enough and he knew that she wouldn't tell him wrong.

"Well." He looked down towards his cast with both joy and shame. Did he really believe that? Could he truly say that he could trust a stranger more than his friends?

He gave up everything so he could come here, but maybe it was everything that gave up on him first. He left Kate too, or maybe it was her that left him behind.

The more he thought about it the more he felt heavy with guilt. What if someone missed him?

"No." He shook his head at the thought. He remembered when he got back overhearing how they sent a search party for Kate.

Only his friends missed him. It was like the entire pack moved on, but couldn't go on without Kate.

He wasn't even greeted by anyone other than Eve "Heh, yea some greeting that was. I can still feel the wind knocked out of me"

He had failed several times before now. Though he was disheartened by this he had someone looking out for him.

She had taken him in and helped him to heal, stayed by his side. She had to be trustworthy to help a complete stranger.

A smile worked its way onto his face when he remembered what she had done for him.

He wanted to see her again. To thank her and maybe even ask if he could join her.

He placed his paw on his head and concentrated "Now if I were her where would I go?"

Every direction was relatively the same. Trees here and there with the occasional hill. But in his mind he knew there had to be something more.

He just had to form a question of what he was looking for.

"Now where-" He planted his paw back onto the ground unaware of the muddy mark he placed just above his brow.

She had taken him in and also gave him instructions of where to go. Even during the times when he was awake she managed to keep him at ease.

"Would a wolf-" Tapping his paw and swishing his tail he though of the situation he was in before. He thought back to where they had stayed, where she had brought him to.

It was a den that you could see anything from anywhere and a descent shelter from a storm. It was well placed within the grasslands that it'd be hard to find at all.

"That wanted to say hidden be?" Humphrey skimmed the area once more. Each pass he made an attempt to gain understanding of the area.

While he was thinking the sun was starting to set giving off a deep orange glow to the valley.

Far up ahead the mountain he had seen came into a clearer view.

A hazy grey cloud loomed over it, but the residing light managed to stretch over the range as if reaching to one last hope.

Snowcapped and reflecting the deep orange to the highest peak made where he was seem insignificant.

Then it hit him.

"She would be closer to there."

He was excited, he knew where she should be. But she wouldn't live on the mountain, that would be foolish to try.

There had to be enough food and water for her to sustain herself. From him following the course of the river he knew that it was getting deeper. He was getting closer to its source.

"Where the source is that's where she'll be." He didn't even question himself. He had no doubts that she would be there when he got there.

He got up and took a single step forward and realized that his paw itched more than it did a moment ago. He looked down and saw it still covered in mud.

"Eww." He spat in disgust. He found much of his cleaned grey fur had turned to a dark brownish red color.

He was cleaned before this and he couldn't possibly talk to her like this.

"Ah well." He shrugged his shoulders and pressed on "I'll just clean up at a lake I hope."

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**I'm back on my schedule so look out for the next episode and more writings soon. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	19. Pt1 Ch2 Ep4

**Alright I'm a little late, but I'll make up for it with WEEKEND POSTS and more to come soon Thankiez for all who read and reviewed. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Abandoned:**

Humphrey headed through the woods, calm, peaceful with the only sounds being the music of the crickets and birds chirping overhead.

The sun had vanished and the moon was beginning to rise graciously leaving him enough light to guide his path toward the mountain even further.

"UGH." He shouted "I can't take much more of this."

He had been walking for over an hour now. Thick traces of mud and grime covered and caked to much of his fur. After treading the terrain for so long he was feeling the full effects of hunger and to rest his aching paws.

Regardless of how far he walked he stood close to the river. It's mouth was getting narrower and the water flowed slower as he went. It was his guide to a better land, or so he hoped.

"I need food fast. Now where's that lake?"

Reaching another hill, barren with the exception of a lone twisted tree he decided it was time to rethink his plan.

He lumbered to the top, it wasn't a challenge like ha had faced before more so of a brisk exercise.

Getting to the top he sat looking down and feeling his sore paws "I should be close by now."

While he looked down he saw the shadow of the tree casting itself over him. It was already dark so shade didn't help him much, but he took a slight interest in what was on its surface.

"Yep." He tapped on the base of the it's roughened trunk "Definitely dead."

The tree darkened oak and hollow loomed high over him. Twisting and turning in any direction it could reach in the sky. Its roots gnarled , cracking and plastered with specks of moss where it could survive.

The tree smelled as bad as it looked, giving off a pungent odor that made him tense up and shake off what he could almost taste.

He did find only one good quality of the tree. He remembered that moss grows on the North side of trees.

"Heh, I guess that chat with Winston was useful." He took a glance at where it was growing and pointed himself in that direction.

On top of this hill he could oversee much of what lied before him. He could see over the next area of woods, vast and unlike where he was now full of life. Trees surrounding a large area, and his river disappeared.

Just beyond the bald spot where he sat in the darkness of the woods he saw a light. Shimmering and dancing off of the various trees. He traced the flow of the river and it snaked and turned sight into the light.

"Well, there we go."

He looked up into the sky finding a circle of silver moonlight being swallowed by a grey mass of clouds high above him. A flash of light came down to the top of the mountain and he felt a tingle of cold around him.

"Oh come on!" He shouted, tapping his paws on the ground in frustration.

The storm mimicked his and bested his moment of anger by flashing another bolt, lighting the sky and sending a roar through the earth.

He grimaced at the thought that he was heading in the storms direction.

Going towards the storm would mean things would get worse. But the thought of that girl made him want to brave through the weather. After all she saved him during a storm, and who's to say she didn't need help?

He smiled and threw his head to the sky. It may have been gloomy but in his heart things were getting better.

Leaning back he thought of what his next course of action would be. "Finally, I'll get the chance to-Ah."

Lightning flashed and Humphrey leaned fell backwards into the tree's base. As he fell he hit the tree's rough siding, breaking through the bark as if it were never there at all.

He landed on the cold barren and unusually soft ground under the tree, and as quickly as his instincts told him he tried to get up.

He forced the thought of giving up out of his mind and he rolled to his belly. Planting his feet firmly he forced himself up but felt something jerk and snag on his casted arm.

"Huh, what's in there?" He questioned baffled as to who or what would be in a dead tree.

He fidgeted around hoping to free himself before the on coming storm but still it was no use.

He sighed and cautiously poked his nose into the tree "Alright let's see what's going on here."

It was dark inside the tree so he couldn't see what it was that he had caught the cast on, but whatever it was it was holding on tightly and itching his paw.

Squinting his eyes and trying to adjust to what little light he could find he saw something jagged laying on the ground. His paw was caught on it, but now he knew where to start.

"Fine." He smirked a little since it was nothing to be afraid of "We'll do this the hard way."

Sitting down and gaining a grip on whatever part of the side of the tree he could he braced himself to pull.

"One, two." Part of the clouds above had passed by and Humphrey got a look at what was on the inside of the tree.

"Three-eeEAHH." With the help of a sliver of moonlight Humphrey saw the bones of another creature laying on the ground. Curled up with its body partially decomposed and sunk into the ground.

In the blink of an eye he turned tail and ran, tripping and rolling down the hill towards where he had last seen the lake. Storm or no storm, he didn't turn back.

Hurrying back to his feet he dashed towards the cover of the darkened woods. It was even darker and scarier looking than he remembered. With the wind starting to pick up in speed he had to find that girl and shelter quickly.

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**Sorry that this was posted late, Just realized I could write on my phone and save to google docs and pick up later (wow am I smart to forget that 1). New episode guaranteed 09/8/2012. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	20. Pt1 Ch2 Ep5

**As promised here's the next episode. More stuff to come soon. Thankiez for all who read and reviewed. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Stalking the Prey:**

Humphrey scrambled through the woods with his tail tucked between his legs frightened from what he just saw.

'There's no way that was real.' He repeated this over and over in his mind as if it were the only thing he could say for now.

He continued forward through the darkness too scared to turn back. His heart and mind raced, with neither finding a common ground.

A flash of lightning up ahead startled him enough for him to dash towards one of the many trees around.

Pressing himself against the nearest pine he could find he sat and panted gathering his thoughts.

"It wasn't real, right?" Humphrey looked down at his cast.

Part of the fine had been cut into slightly and there was a piece of a dull grey jagged piece protruding from it.

He breathed heavily knowing that it was true "What was that though?"

His heart skipped a beat. He had seen dead bodies plenty of times, but he had no idea of why this one startled him more any other.

He had merely gotten a glance at the body before running away, there was no way for him to tell without looking back.

"I'm not going back there!" He said shaking the thought out of his mind.

His stomach growled once more making him feel an empty and dull pain.

He turned around facing the direction of the old dead tree. "I'm still not going back." He said to himself "Any food I'll get I can find away from that thing."

He sniffed at the air hoping to find her scent trail or some way to find a descent shelter. A cold breeze passed through, stinging with cold air and carrying with it a plethora of smells.

He took several breaths and found one of the scents was very close.

"Strange." He said. It was strong and didn't smell like another wolf or anything particularly big.

The scent was practically under his nose. Intrigued by the scent he walked around the tree as silent as he could in the dark.

Slowly he inched his way to the odd scent but ended up stepping on a branch. Flinching at the noise he looked down and could make out a small pile of debris.

"What's this?" He bent down and sniffed at the mass of twigs and pine needles. He could smell something buried under it.

"Only one way to find out." He laid flat and carefully pawed at the pile.

He knocked away whatever pieces he could he found what looked like white fur. Curious he continued to remove debris from the object. When he was done he went wide-eyed with joy.

"A rabbit?" He yelled.

It was a rather large white rabbit. It's eyes glossed over and its fur starting to lose its color.

"Wow, it's a good sized one. I wonder how it got here."

Though it was found under twigs he didn't find that unusual from the tree above him. Giving It a once over he couldn't find any tell tale signs of how it finally died. It was fully intact, no blood stains or bruises, nothing was twisted or punctured.

He shrugged his shoulders "Must've just died of old age, I guess."

Leaning down he scooped up the rabbit in his jaws and carried it by its neck.

"Food's done, water's close, now for the shelter." He checked off the things from his mental list and the last was the most important now.

He looked around for any sign of where he was. It was dark down any path he turned but he could see a shimmer of light dancing just up ahead.

"Finally, there's the lake!" he said feeling a chilling wind pass by him. The storm was getting closer but he was finally near where his companion was.

He took a single step in the lakes direction and the felt himself tipping over from the weight of the rabbit throwing him off.

Catching himself before he caused further harm he quickly sat and released the rabbit.

He couldn't afford to leave it behind for the storm to ruin it. He couldn't keep wasting time without a place to shield him from the storm.

'Just get a better grip on it.' Rethinking his strategy he shut his jaws on the rabbits midsection and lifted it up. It felt somewhat lighter than his last attempt and wasn't throwing off his balance in either direction.

Silently cheering for himself he padded his way towards where he had seen the lake. He was almost to his new home.

* * *

**Hmm… I posted almost on time this time. Let's try this again tomorrow with a new episode shall we? If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	21. Pt1 Ch2 Ep6

**Ok I'm late again, but soon… that is all. Thankiez for all who read, and those who took the time to review. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Accidental Infiltration:**

Humphrey proudly treaded through the darkness of the woods, cheerfully carrying his long sought out meal. He headed to where he had seen the shimmering light just up ahead.

The storm continued to brew and small gusts of wind whipped and whispered past his ears.

A bright burst of lightning hammered down just overhead. He yelped and scrambled to cover his ears from the loud noise, dropping his catch in the process.

"Great, more lightning." He shouted trying to cover his ears but because of the weight on the cast left he had to use his right paw to cover both "I've got to get out of here."

Startled as he was from the loud and sudden flash he had to keep pressing on. The lake was so close, she was close, he just had to find the den.

"I can't be distracted now." He shook his head and picked up the rabbit once more.

Facing the light dancing off of the trees he walked a bit faster "I should be there in just a minute."

As he went forward he felt something cold and wet hit his nose. He froze in his tracks knowing full well what it meant.

He turned to the sky, pleading with his eyes for this not to be but it was. Rain began to fall to the ground, drenching his mud caked fur along with it.

'Not now, I'm almost there!' A moment later he felt it several more times and heard it in the trees as well.

He ran on three legs as fast as he could, getting out of the rain was the best thing he could think of.

As he ran a bolt of lightning flashed again so close to him he jumped slightly.

He shut his eyes and lowered himself to the ground the moment he landed as if it would save him from being hit.

'I've come too far.' He yelled to himself 'It's just over there, isn't it?'

He peeked one eye open and through the dark saw tiny specks of light dancing off of a waving surface.

He was finally here. He had made it to the banks of the lake, his new home "But where's the den?"

It was too dark for him to see anything well. All he could manage to see were his food and the lake at the time, even many of the trees or what he thought were trees were too darkened for him to be sure.

"So I'm here." He thought. "If I were to make a den where would it be around here?"

He picked himself up to begin his search but felt a strong wind nearly force him to the ground, followed by a large stream of water.

He was soaked all over, feeling the clumps and specks of mud wash off of him quickly. He almost dropped his food from his sudden bath.

Coughing and sputtering his own thoughts told him 'RUN!'

With water blasting in his eyes from the howling storm he ran along the banks of the lake. He had no idea where he was headed, but he didn't want to loose his food, nor his footing.

He couldn't see much and sharp gusts of wind threatened to end whatever journey he had thought he would have.

He crouched himself as low as he could and scanned the area.

Barely able to see what was in front of him he searched in the dark.

A distant flash lit up the area and he saw just beyond one of the banks of the river a rather large hill surrounded by bushes.

"Well," He sighed "It's the only chance I've got."

Using all four paws reluctantly he crawled and slunk his way to the bush.

Fighting against the wind and rain he soaked himself further and with every ounce of determination he had left he fought against fate.

He dug his claws into the dirt and dragging, inching himself and his 'prey' toward the mass of shrubbery.

He had to squint most of the way and it was difficult to navigate to the hill until he felt something jabbing his nose.

Forcing one eye open he was met with a dense thicket of leaves. Shutting his jaws tighter on the rabbit he crawled through as much of the bush as he could until he broke through to the other side.

He sat down and shook himself as best as he could. Whipping the rainwater from his eyes he looked out from under the bush "I guess I'm stuck here for now."

The bush didn't provide much cover, and he doubted that it would hold well for him in the storm, but he didn't have much of a choice. The bush rocked and swayed but was stable enough to ride out the weather.

The tree just above him stood relatively tall and proud, shielding him from most of the heavier parts of the storm.

He silently thanked it and calmed himself. The only problem he had now was that it was starting to get cold from the chilling wind.

Still carrying his prized food he tried to wrap his paws around himself to keep even somewhat warm.

"S-so much for s-shelter." He chattered.

Shivering from the cold a crack of lightning came by so close to him that in an instant he scooted back several feet and fell backwards into something on the hill.

"Ow?" He yelled, landing flat on his back and accidentally tossing the rabbit.

Wincing slightly from the momentary pain he rolled to his side to figure out what he had fallen into.

'So I fell into a hole in the side of a hill.' He thought, still unable to see because of the overcast and no moonlight.

"Wait, could that mean?" A sudden realization came over him. To affirm his question he took a single step forward to what he hoped wouldn't be a solid wall.

Waving his free paw around in the empty darkness he reached down to find a solid, smoothed dirt floor.

"Why didn't I notice it before?" He asked himself and looked back to the entrance. He could only make out faint signs of fallen debris.

'It's a start, but…' Everything in his mind told him that this was a den, and he hoped it was true.

'Wait!' He froze just before taking another step 'If it is then someone might be-'

As grateful as he was to find somewhere to evade the storm he didn't want to impose on another, nor be in danger.

Then another thought cam to him 'What if it's hers?'

His heart raced at the thought, he could be in danger but he had to know.

Taking a short deep breath he proceeded forward and did the only thing he could do.

"H-h-hello?" He said, echoing his voice into the darkened space "Is anyone there?"

He held his breath and patiently awaited an answer. If there was anyone that answered back then he would be at their mercy.

"Anyone?" He questioned once more ensuring that he was alone.

A howl of wind rustled the bushes outside and a flash of lightning illuminated the space.

Humphrey got a quick peek at what he was in for.

His food lay on the floor just a foot away from him. The area was empt with smoothed walls around. Several deeply set roots hung from the ceiling but not close enough for him to hit himself.

He sighed in relief "Looks abandoned."

He was here, he was at the lake, but it seemed a bit odd "Well someone had to have built it, so where are they?"

He was about to back away and try to escape in case whomever built it came back. As he did the storm picked up in its ferocity, and he knew if he walked out there now that he may not be able to get back in so easily.

He was stuck here for the night, but it occurred to him that the den style seemed familiar "Its close to the water so its even better than the last one."

He sniffed around the entrance and walked toward his food. He couldn't pick up any scent trail.

Though odd he couldn't help but wonder "If I had to guess I'd say she made this one too."

He sat there in the dark of his newly found den, feeling his stomach churning around.

Humphrey looked down to the rabbit and smiled. It had been a long day for him and he felt as though he finally accomplished something well.

If she were here he'd thank her "Well she's not here now."

Humphrey yawned deeply feeling more tired now than he did when he was traveling. He had this place to himself, a nice and comfortable den.

The storm howled on outside but he was safe here. The sound of rain helped ease him, making him yawn slightly.

Night was upon him he was tired. "But first." He said, turning to the rabbit and liking his lips excitedly "Let's eat."

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**Soon! If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	22. Pt1 Ch2 Ep7

**First off, I've got very interesting announcement, this story from the plot I have planned out will be a long story. Also...Soon! Thankiez for all who read, and those who took the time to review. Interesting update info at the bottom. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Hunter and the Hunted:**

Humphrey sat In the middle of the den and prepared himself for his food. It was calm and peaceful in the empty den, just him his prey and the storm raging on outside.

He was grateful that he had a nice place to stay, sheltered and spacious. He had food, it wasn't much, but it was enough to get him through the night if he saved some of it.

"Ration's, heh." He scoffed, looking down at the white rabbit. He had never had to ration things for himself before.

Back in Jasper, he ate with his pack members. Being an omega though he usually waited his turn in the back of the line, even though he usually gave part of his share to his friends when they couldn't grab any.

He usually didn't mind waiting, but some of the alphas were less friendly around him when it came to food.

If he were really hungry he'd ask Winston, and he would be more than happy to help. His tactics did little to change Eve's mind, she didn't do special permissions.

He smiled weakly, remembering some of the good times he had with his pack.

Leaning down he bit into one of the rabbit's legs. Feeling his teeth sink into the skin and soft fur of his dinner only made him even hungrier.

He placed his working paw on its side to gain better leverage and he pulled his head up. He felt bristles of fur tickle his nose while he tried to tear off a piece.

Humphrey continued to toss his head in any direction, awaiting that victorious snap. He didn't know how long he did this for, but he felt tired after a while.

"Huh?" He said, realizing that his effort to cut into the rabbit was futile

Several times he but into the bunny as hard as he could, yielding the same result.

"What's this thing made of?"

He had never had food that, betrayed him like this before. For a meal to be so easy he had no way of actually feasting on it.

A bit upset he chomped down again, biting into its neck this time. He shook it vigorously and accidentally tossed it at the wall of the den.

He had trouble finding a way to cut into the rabbit, but it wasn't the first. He strode up to it and thought back at the times had trouble with this kind of thing.

Being a wolf he had the jaw strength to hold onto his prey, he even saved Kate like that once.

"Yeah, I only did it to impress her." He told himself this over and over, if it were anyone else he wouldn't have had the courage to hold on.

He knew that being an omega and having no formal training he was always feeding off of scraps of whatever the alphas had left for him.

Sure his bites were 'maybe' strong enough to maybe leave a bruise hopefully, and to hold tight to whatever he needed.

But that didn't mean he always had a good advantage.

His teeth weren't as sharp as an alphas. When Kate bit his tail it hurt, his bite on the other paw didn't even harm Marcel.

'Who am I fooling, I couldn't even tear open that cupcake bag without effort.' He got the bag of chips open only because it was cheap plastic.

His 'easy' meal wasn't as easy as he thought. It was there, mocking him, making him hungrier, and even more upset.

He looked down at the rabbit once more wondering why it brought about such a painful memory.

Even the memories of what he left behind made him angry. He didn't want to keep being reminded of his failures.

He felt tears forming in his eyes. "This is all your fault" He growled at the rabbit, reaching down for it and wildly snapping at it several times.

It was dark, but that didn't stop him from attacking the dead bunny in his rage.

After a few seconds he got up and backed away and panted, "Did-did I get anything off of it?"

He had to find out if he did, but he couldn't see much, only the dirt on the ground and sporadic flashes now and then.

Much to his dismay one flash helped him see his food still fully intact. He was hungry, he was tired, he was by himself in all the turmoil.

He dug his claws in the ground and grit his teeth, he felt a deep rotted sorrow in his heart. In his fury he raised his paw and slammed it against the rabbits body, forgetting that he still had on his cast.

In a flash he felt a searing pain run through the whole of his arm. He fell to the ground yelling in pain from his mistake.

He rolled to his back quickly, trying to relieve the pain, but for whatever reason it hurt more. Nothing was as easy for him now, without his pack he couldn't even get a simple meal.

He only acted tough around Kate because of how he felt about her.

As he writhed in pain every thought lead him to one conclusion. He was never cut out to be lone wolf, he wasn't strong enough to survive. No, he was a lone Omega, destined to fail without a pack. They had left him behind. No, that couldn't be, he left them didn't he?

He lay in the darkness of the den, pain in his arm, mulling over his thoughts, his actions, his life.

He had it good in Jasper, he got everything he needed, but the one his heart wanted could never be with him.

"I had to leave them, or-" He wanted it so desperately to be true, and at the same time that it never had to be.

Humphrey looked toward the ceiling, bearing the false resemblance to a cloudy sky. He looked on imagining clouds, drifting by, carelessly, aimlessly, able to move and be free.

He had only one shred of hope left after everything that he had so loved had gone away.

That girl who saved him. She'd surely help him, she'd understand him, she-.

Humphrey had been so lost in deep emotional thought that he barely heard footsteps from the entrance of the den. Even with the storm pouring down outside he could clearly hear light taps of paws striking the dirt.

'It's her' His mind told him, 'It's her, tell her, thank her for helping you.'

Leaving the rabbit on the ground Humphrey rolled to his paws. Ignoring the burning in his arm with renewed vigor he faced himself toward the entrance.

He had to think of something to say, what would she like, 'Maybe she likes rabbit?' he could share that, or even ask for her help in actually eating the thing.

"H-hey, I just wante-EGH"

The moment he opened his mouth he felt a dull pain forcing him to the ground making him yelp in surprise.

Someone, or something landed on him, knocking the wind out of him.

'Could this be her?' He strained himself to get up, but was forced back down by something striking his chest.

He heard several growls from the figure above him, definitely not feminine in their tone, deep and echoing throughout the den.

Trying to regain his breath he put two and two together, 'If it's not her the who is it?'

He managed to catch a glimpse of the creature from pale shreds of light forming cascading in from the entrance of the den. He traced the features and to his horror he saw the creature bearing its fangs in his face. It was a large wolf, and it was trying crushing him.

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**For those who are wondering about Kate and other things don't worry, more stuff to come. Truth is shocking! Also I'm re-fixing my "The Week After" story (hopefully a chapter a day until I release ch 7. So if you see changes that's why. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	23. Pt1 Ch2 Ep8

**Well I was going to post this on Wednesday, but... I couldn't keep you all in suspense (it was driving me crazy). Also a bit of info for what's ahead. I will answer about 80% of the questions you have currently in the next chapter. Only 2 episodes left till ch3! So ask away and I'll try to answer. Thankiez for anyone who read, and those who took the time to review. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:The Lone Wolves:**

It was the middle of the night, or at least that's what he could tell from where he was.

Humphrey lay on his side, harshly pinned down by the unfamiliar wolf.

He folded his ears back and tried to shield whatever part of him he could with his tail.

It had been in a single moment that this happened, just as he failed to get his food for a third time that day.

Just as he had found the den where he thought his 'friend' who had rescued him before.

But from the low growling, and no relief for the pressure on his chest, he knew he was wrong.

Being crushed under its cold paws he couldn't do much, he could barely breathe, he had to resort to gasping for air whenever possible.

Given the situation forming a plan, a successful way of escape was going to be difficult.

'I've got to get out of here.' He panicked, trying to wiggle out of the strong force pressing down on him.

From the sheer weight alone he could barely budge, instead he felt as though he were sinking into the ground, deeper and deeper.

Out of fear he yelped and kicked his legs, forcing out a few more breaths in exchange for the effort.

He had a much harder time throwing around the weight of the cast. It moved around cumbersomely, it hurt him just to move it, but he was desperate.

He managed to graze the fur of the other wolf, though it only caused the growling to intensify.

The stranger gave Humphrey a deep, angry, and feral growl, making him tremble in fear and abandon his flailing.

What happened next didn't surprise him as much.

Humphrey felt the sharp fangs of the wolf take hold of his neck. He shot his eyes open from the sudden searing he felt when the wolf bit down.

Not hard enough to draw blood, but still just enough to where he knew he wouldn't be making any attempt to escape.

He had been in this kind of situation before, with another wolf's fangs at his neck, but never had he been in the jaws of a stranger.

He used to wrestle with his pack-mates, mostly the omegas when they had nothing else to entertain them.

He dared not attempt to anger Eve, he had no idea of how 'friendly' her bite would be.

From what Humphrey could tell this wolf was an alpha. His size and strength were clear reminders of his earlier failure with just about everything he did.

Now in the jaws of death he felt helpless. He didn't even have a chance to tell either Kate nor the girl who saved him how he felt.

He narrowed his eyes, full of tears of sorrow and regret. He was no where near help, he had left Kate, and he missed home.

He wanted to plead, to protest, to be spared the fate he had given himself.

While still at whatever amount of mercy this wolf had, Humphrey opened his mouth.

He tried to speak through his fear. The first word he thought of was a simple 'please'.

All he managed to do was elicit a soft, pained whimper.

As he whined he felt some of the pressure on his neck diminish slightly, and some of the weight from his side shifted.

Though still uneasy Humphrey felt relieved, he could breathe and move his neck a little atleast.

"Who, do you think you are?" The stranger growled, his tone was harsh, sharp and bold.

Humphrey tilted his head up, barely able to see past the wolf's fangs. He dared not look directly in his eyes even if he could.

Even in the ferocity of the storm he felt safer outside.

"I-" He trembled, trying to find any word to help him.

"Answer me," The wolf growled louder just as lightning flashed throughout the den "Who are you?"

"I'ma wolf!" Humphrey blurted out, not realizing his response from being stricken with fear.

The wolf leaned down, growling, his fangs barred ready to strike at a moments notice.

"Don't play with me, pup. Why did you come here?"

Humphrey remembered his original plan, to find her. She wasn't here, but he couldn't tell him that.

"I-i w-a, I was j-just-"

"You were just what," The wolf yelled, cutting him off "Spit it out!"

"I had to get out of the storm." Humphrey tried to cover his eyes with his paws but only ended up hitting his chin with his cast.

The wolf growled, he wasn't buying it "Then why did you cover yourself in mud?"

"W-what I, I didn't cover-"

"That's the oldest trick in alpha school" The wolf sneered, "Covering your scent to hide from your enemy."

"I'm sorry, I-"

"Invading, My territory!" The wolf cut him off again.

He shifted more weight to Humphrey's side "Stealing, My food!"

"Trying to take over my den. Who do you think you are?" He snapped his jaws near Humphrey's ear causing him to twitch nervously.

The wolf snarled, getting dangerously close to Humphrey's neck once more "Who are you with?"

"I-i'm alone!" He didn't hesitate, he didn't want this crazed wolf finding out anything about him.

"LIAR!" He barked, making Humphrey curl in an attempt to shield himself to any degree.

"I saw you, earlier by tall grass. "Who did you get this from."

Humphrey felt the wolf place his paw onto the cast. He grit his teeth in shock, hoping that the stranger wouldn't put any further strain on it.

'Wait, he was there, he knew?' This was serious, how long had he been followed 'Does he know about her?'

He himself knew nothing about the girl, but he had to keep her safe "I don't know, someone just helped me."

"Someone?" He asked, far more calmly than before "Who was it?"

He was relieved that the stranger didn't have a clue to the whereabouts to the girl.

Now he had to get himself out of here "I don't know."

Humphrey heard just then a growl like he had never heard before, he could tell that his answer was unwelcome.

"ANSWER ME!"

He could feel the unhidden anger deep within the wolf's tone.

"I'm telling you the truth."

Humphrey curled himself tighter into a ball, shielding his underbelly with his paws and covering his face with his tail.

The growling grew quieter and the wolf leaned back just far enough to let Humphrey move.

"This is MY den, give me one reason of why I shouldn't tear you apart."

The alpha loomed over him, soaked in rain and slinging drops whenever he shifted. He breathed slowly, heavily, keeping his paw firm on Humphrey's ribs.

Humphrey felt a fire burn within him, telling him to press on. 'I'm not gonna let it end like this.' He thought.

If he were to go out into the storm right now he wouldn't find any shelter quick enough to hide.

Though clearly outmatched and overbearingly out-skilled he made one single desperate attempt to free himself.

The wolf uttered a deep and low growl.

Humphrey took as deep of a breath as he could while being crushed. He craned his neck and aimed his jaws for anything he could hit.

His attacker let loose a threatening growl and narrowed his eyes as if ready to strike.

In fear that this was his last chance Humphrey wrenched his eyes shut and threw his head toward the wolf, fervently trying to find something to bite.

He heard the growl above him stop immediately, but he was too afraid to look.

With fear and desperation still nipping at him his curiosity got the better of him and he snuck a peek.

A flash of light gave him a clear view of the outcome.

The alpha was still standing tall and proud. Humphrey slowly traced his eye to whatever he managed to bite.

With his desperate attempt he only managed to bite into the wolf's forearm.

Humphrey closed his eyes once more, awaiting the attack he would receive with deep rooted regret.

A moment of silence passed between the two, and Humphrey heard a very different sound from what he had expected.

It wasn't his own screaming, his bones being snapped in two, it was very familiar to something he had left behind.

He carefully opened his eyes to see the alpha standing above him, chuckling, but he couldn't understand why.

"Is that it?" The wolf scoffed "You've got the strength of a newborn pup."

He continued "You've got to be the scrawniest and scraggliest wolf I've ever seen."

In all the time Humphrey had been pinned down this was the first time he felt insulted, but he didn't feel the same unease as before.

"The storm'll blow over, you can stay for the night" The stranger looked outside, lifting one paw "Just, the night!"

He took a step back, releasing Humphrey and sat near the den entrance "You're out of here by morning."

He couldn't believe it, he was free. He would live another day, but why did the alpha let him go.

Humphrey rolled to his feet, skeptically, curious as to why he had such a sudden change of heart "So, you're not gonna attack me?"

"If I found you to be a threat then yes." He didn't even look back, just staring through the entrance at the storm. He had his arms crossed and was resting his head.

'Tomorrow, huh?' His mind was full of questions, and his motions were more cautious than he had been used to, but his appetite came back to speak first.

The rabbit he had still lay in the same position at the wall, slightly dirtied from the scuffle but still salvageable.

Humphrey padded over to it again, assuming that the questionable wolf had forgotten about it, or merely gave it up.

'Well, he's not at your throat anymore.'

He checked over to see the alpha still sitting there, possibly deep in thought.

He didn't want to take any chances so he forced himself to face where the stranger sat.

"What's your name kid?"

Humphrey flinched, thinking it that he had made the wolf angry by taking the rabbit again.

He had to be honest with himself, he didn't want to get on this guy's bad side again. 'He already knew everything that happened, and he hated being lied to.'

"Well pup, you got a name?"

"The name's Humphrey." He said hurriedly, wanting to be honest incase he were to be interrogated again.

After speaking his name he got no response, just the constant pitter-patter of the rain and rustle of the trees swaying outside.

It didn't seem like this wolf were too particular for conversation, but that didn't seem important then.

'Alright, this time I've got it this time.' Without further distractions, and given an invitation to shelter for the night Humphrey rekindled his effort to finally eat his meal.

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**SOON! If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	24. Pt1 Ch2 Ep9

**Only 1 episode left till ch3. If you have questions ask away and I'll try to answer. Thankiez for anyone who read, and those who took the time to review (Seriously, it makes things fun). Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:A Den of Wolves:**

It was past midnight and the storm had died down to a less fierce drizzle.

The soft sound of the pitter-patter of rain and distant rolls of thunder echoed through the den.

The wolf laying near the dens entrance enjoyed the mellow sounds that eased his mind. Though the other sounds that came from his soon to depart guest were less than favorable.

'That kid's been making racket all night.' He thought, seeing another bolt of lightning flash by.

He heard Humphrey desperately gnawing at his undeserved food for the past while.

Though since the 'pup' be leaving soon he didn't feel as though he should bother telling him to keep it down, that is until he heard him whimpering.

He shook his head in frustration 'He'll be gone tomorrow just put up with it until then.'

"Kid." He turned to see Humphrey shivering in the corner "What's wrong with you?"

Humphrey took a step back, startled at the sudden voice "I thought you were asleep."

"Asleep?" He questioned.

"Who on earth could sleep through the racket this storm's making." He said, hiding his true reasons for not drifting off.

He waited for a reply, but Humphrey just stood there still shaking.

"Now, back to the real problem," Knowing something was amiss he rose to his feet and stretched "What's, wrong?"

"I have to go."

He got a clearer view of Humphrey when his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the den. He was hunched over, his legs crossed and his tail curled around himself.

"Alright then," He tilted his head towards the bushes outside "Go on."

Taking the alpha's word Humphrey moved further to the back of the den and began to sniff around.

The alpha tilted his head 'Ohm he better not be trying this in here'

"Kid," He yelled out, stopping Humphrey in his tracks "What do you think you're doing?"

By the tone of voice Humphrey knew he'd be in trouble.

"I was just finding a spot to-"

"This is my den," He shouted back "Take 'that' outside."

Humphrey's eyes shot open, though he couldn't see the alpha's expression in the dark.

"What?" He questioned "In the storm?"

"Well kid you got any better ideas?"

"I could dig a hole and-"

"OR, how about this." The wolf said, again cutting him off from anymore obscure ideas.

He took a few steps towards Humphrey "Since you're, SO afraid of going out."

He stopped several feet away from the cowering wolf, standing tall and bearing his teeth "Then I'll just tear off your back half, throw it outside, and hopefully reattach it back to you in the morning."

Humphrey was shocked. The last time he was in this situation he remembered what he told Kate.

"I-i can't go when I feel pressured." He spoke back hoping that his host would understand.

'That's it, time to end this.'

The wolf growled, gradually getting louder "GO."

He took one step in Humphrey's direction, bearing his fangs and raising his voice "Outside."

As a final act in his display he slammed his paw onto the dirt floor and deepened his voice "NOW!"

Humphrey got the idea and clumsily scurried outside, keeping his front paw off the ground and his tail tucked between his legs.

He desperately tried to make himself smaller to slip past the wolf, in fear of being mauled.

The wolf didn't even turn back, but only felt Humphrey making a dash for the bushes.

As Humphrey got to the mouth of the den he heard the wolf muttering something like 'pups' behind him.

Humphrey made his way outside, he hadn't been out since the storm and was somewhat afraid of going out at the time.

Despite his situation he knew that the alpha was right, he should've said something earlier.

He came face to face with the bushes he passed by earlier, the storm hadn't uprooted them and he got a good look around.

The vicious wind that almost blew him over became a gentle rocking breeze, and the torrent of rain had become a slow and even drizzle.

The sky was still dark and the moon had vanished into the horizon.

All that was left were the silhouettes of trees, the rolling terrain and Humphrey.

"He can't be all that bad." Humphrey said to himself, taking in the scenery.

The wolf took him in for the night, and for that he was grateful. But still longterm he didn't have much planned out, finding that girl was his only true goal.

"Well, I'm being kicked out tomorrow." He sighed, remembering the place he had come from down the river "I guess I should head back there."

But every time he thought about that he remembered he was just winging his plans. If it weren't for this den he'd be dead by now, and he didn't know what neck of the woods he was in.

If anything he could ask for directions, but then a thought crossed his mind 'What good are directions if I'm not going back?'

Did he want to go back, would anyone want him after they-, no, 'HE' turned his back on them?

"Kid, you alright out there?" Humphrey's ears picked up the sound of the wolf calling him from the inside of the den.

He didn't want him to know that he needed time to think out things by himself "Yeah, just-uh, taking my time."

"Alright." He yelled back with his voice amplified by the dome-like den "Just remember you're up early tomorrow either way."

The wolf didn't hear a response back from Humphrey, silently hoping he got the message.

He then sat back down at the entrance and continued to watch outside, deeply sighing at the calming noise of the storm 'Heh, that kid.'

He heard the bushes rustling outside and the soft tapping of feet against the dirt when Humphrey walked back in.

When he heard Humphrey sit back down he heard him continue to gnaw and chew on the rabbit in the background.

He couldn't believe it 'There's no way, is he really that weak?'

He turned to see hum still snapping his teeth on the white furred creature "You still haven't eaten that thing yet?"

"I almost have it." Humphrey answered back with the rabbit's still intact carcass hanging from his mouth.

"Oh for the-," He stood up and padded his way over to Humphrey "Here, give me this."

Humphrey didn't want the wolf to get upset with him so he complied and immediately released the rabbit 'Well, there goes my dinner.'

"Here." The alpha took the rabbit in his jaws and placed it on the ground.

Taking one paw he held the rabbit down and but into its side. Jerking his head skyward he tore off part of it, forcing the sound to echo around them.

"See, it's not that hard." The wolf then took what small portion of the rabbit he had and carried it off with him, leaving the bigger part at Humphrey's paws.

Humphrey was confused, he was given the bigger share despite his rank and the intrusion.

"Thanks, but, why are you giving this to me?" He questioned, not realizing he was swishing his tail across the floor swiftly.

"You'll need it, for tomorrow kid." The wolf said back, lightly chewing on his small portion of the meal.

Humphrey looked down, the rabbit was his. He made no attempt to refuse the offer after how long he had tried to tear the thing open.

He leaned down and took his first bite of his long awaited prize. He was right, the alpha wasn't a bad guy after all 'Just wish he'd stop calling me kid.'

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**SOON-er, seriously! I mean really soon. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... Till Next Time DLW.**


	25. Pt1 Ch2 Ep End

**Next episode starts ch3 If you have questions ask away and I'll try to answer 10/6/2012. Thankiez for anyone who read, and those who took the time to review. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

**It was brought to my attention by (Country Wolf-Dog) that I had short changed the chapter for its true worth. After re reading it and comparing it to the next chapter it made no sense. So I re-edited the part in and I thoroughly apologize t any reader that felt as though it could have been better.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 2 The Alpha**

**:Scattered Tracks:**

A bolt of lightning had just flashed by, startling him as he ran through the unfamiliar land.

Humphrey's fur had been soaked by the storm and was slowing down his already nonexistent pace.

"I can't believe she just took off like that." He yelled at himself, fighting against strong gusts of wind.

'I have to find Kate and fast.' He felt every drop of rain as if it were a tear for him and how he felt about her.

Kate had just ran on ahead of him after his recent fluke. He had caused them both to miss out on a very easy way back home.

'I have to set things right.' He told himself this constantly, he had to show Kate that he was someone special.

During the whole car ride he had wanted to tell her, that he loved her. Part of him wanted their journey to continue, even if it were just for him to buy time to build the courage to tell her.

A flash of light interrupted his thoughts and she came into view, trying desperately to hang onto the side of a slippery cliff.

"Hold on Kate, I'm coming." He ran to the cliffside and skidded to a halt.

She was a mess, covered in slick mud and clawing at the wall, trying to make it to the top without slipping into the mudflow of the chasm below.

He knew he'd have to act fast, he had to save her from his mistake, but how.

"Let me think, let me think" His eyes darted around, frantically looking for something of use.

She was far away, any use of a log-sled or something of the sort would be pointless.

'I can't jump that far,' He thought, he was an omega after all, he wouldn't make it past the first rock without falling 'If only I could get higher."

That's when it hit him, and he looked further above her. Long cords of vine came into his view, he just had to get there.

He grinned and dashed over to the tree they hung from. Thankfully enough it was angled enough to where he could climb without much difficulty in the weather.

'Yes,' He thought, dashing towards it without a moment to spare.

Aiming for the lower half first he jumped, nimbly climbing up the tree in search for the spot he saw the vines in.

When he had finally caught sight of them he found them on a branch sturdy enough to hold his weight and then some.

He carefully crawled up to the vines, stopping at the longest set in front of him.

He reached down with his paws and got a hold of it enough to bring it to his moth and pull more of the vine closer to him.

His preparation was complete, all he had to do now was swing over to her. He took one glance down to where to the muddy river and his countenance sank.

'I-i can't do this.'

He was scared, having never done something this dangerous before he shuddered in fear. He turned to Kate and his fear melted away when he saw her sink her claws into the muddy rocks once more.

Kate's life depended on him, He couldn't turn back now, he wouldn't loose her.

He grasped tighter on to the vine, shuddering in anticipation "Here goes-"

He took in a deep breath, closed his eyes and leaned to the side letting gravity take control.

He felt the snap of the vine as it was extended to its full length, and the gentle, subtle raindrops greeting him as he swung.

He felt the rush of wind blowing by him and his stomach flip from the sheer fall.

Though he had his eyes closed the thing that took his mind off of the danger was Kate and he was getting closer.

"Humphrey." He heard her call out for him.

At the mention of his name he shot his eyes open.

"Humphrey!" He heard again, but it wasn't Kate's voice, it was somber and much deeper tone.

"Hngh?" He saw the figure of a wolf flood his vision, looming over him with an outstretched paw weighing heavy on his side.

"Kid, come on, get up."

He felt himself being shaken by the wolf, forcing any sign of sleepiness out of his figure.

As he was being shook his eyes adjusted to find himself not trying to save Kate, but back in the alpha's den.

"Ugh, I'm up, I'm up." He blurted out jolting up and wincing from the slight pain in his paw.

As pained as he was a distant light gleaming just beyond the wolf stung his eyes causing him to stumble back.

While he was coordinating himself Humphrey heard the wolf chuckling for some reason.

"You must be a heavy sleeper, huh?"

"Is it morning, already?" He mockingly yawned.

"It's been morning for hours now kid," He said matter-of-factly as he turned and walked to the dens entrance.

"Its noon, and its time to leave."

"Noon?" It couldn't be that late already, it only took him five minutes tops to find Kate.

"Yes, noon, are you hard at hearing kid?" The wolf called back to him.

He shook his head "N-no."

"Alright, let's get a move on." The alpha said in a deep voice and trotted out of the den "Oh, and you made a terrible mess of that rabbit."

Humphrey looked around, the carcass was nowhere to be found, but tufts of hair lat strewn across the floor randomly scattered about.

He had eaten it, most of it last night, but he had a hard time picking through what he didn't like in the dark.

'I guess he took the rest then.' He was sad, but grateful. He had a place to ease his worries if only for a night. But as the morning sun had risen his time here in the den was soon to be gone.

Humphrey sighed in disappointment, he didn't really have much of a plan in mind except to head back to the other den 'Yea well it's either that or back home.'

He shook his head of the idea and loosely followed suit to his host.

* * *

**(This is the part I left out, once again I apologize)**

* * *

Humphrey limped across the den to outside, feeling a warm gentle breeze pass by when he crossed the open entrance.

It was bright outside; the storm had gone and left only its memory on the terrain, leaving the air fresh and clean.

The bushes that were blocking the entrance of the den were still standing, dancing in the new and vibrant sunlight they were given.

"Come on kid." He heard the alpha calling from just beyond the bushes.

Humphrey took heed to the words and pushed his way through. Unlike yesterday when he had almost fought with the bush, it he parted through the side with no problem.

The moment he passed through his paw struck the ground; it was much differently textured from what he remembered.

It was soft, and cool to the touch, whatever remained of the rain had long since soaked into the ground.

"Woa." He gasped in astonishment at the view from just beyond.

The lake he had passed last night shimmered brightly casting the reflection of the sun on any shadow.

Everything tree that stood by the lake waved to and fro dancing with every passing breeze.

What caught his attention the most was the mountain he saw. High above the valley; covered in a sparkling mist with a single cloud that gracefully flew atop its magnificent peak.

Everything around him was shining with life.

"I know that look," Humphrey turned and saw the alpha sitting under one of the many trees in the area with his head cast toward the open sky with a wide grin on his face.

Humphrey had never gotten the chance to see the wolf in a clear view before, he only got fleeting glances of his rustic fur color.

Curious to finally meet this mysterious wolf he hobbled close to his left side and sat, pretending to observe the scene while identifying the stranger.

He was somewhat different from what Humphrey had originally thought; he expected a much bulkier and heavily set alpha, but in front of him was this almost scraggly wolf.

Though not emaciated he was clearly thinner than what his own body projected for him to be, just possibly underweight for his size.

Even when sitting he was still slightly taller than Humphrey, constantly twitching his ears to the slightest noise. His left ear when he moved it revealed a deep bite mark on the inside.

He had deep reddish grey fur with several long streaks of auburn smoothly blended in running down his chest and back, all twisting to his slender; dark-grey colored tail.

From the grey spots on his mostly brown mane Humphrey could tell he was at least an adult wolf.

He didn't say anything, nor move aside from his deep breaths and occasional flickering of his tail and ears.

Humphrey felt a bit awkward, he wanted to thank him for the place, but he had other things in mind.

"So I'm guessing you're an alpha huh?" Humphrey asked curiously, just trying to pass the time before he was sent away.

He shook his head "Nope," and continued to stare into the open sky.

He was a bit taken back by the response, but he supposed he could guess again.

"You're a beta then?"

"Pup, let me set things straight," The wolf said to him, sitting proudly, the smile on his face washed away by a stern look of annoyance.

"Ranks are for packs." At that moment he brought his gaze down from the sky to face Humphrey.

Humphrey's mouth jarred open from what he was staring at.

The wolf's left eye; soft, and deep gold glistened in the afternoon sun. His right eye, however, was blankly staring at him, no color, no focus, nor any life to it, it was grayed out.

"I'm a lone wolf." He called out, with an expressionless tone, snapping Humphrey out of his stare.

Humphrey looked away as it would hide his thoughts. This stranger was a lone wolf, but what was his reasoning.

Sure Humphrey left, but even he had a motive behind that. Well, he did have a motive, but now, what would he do?

"So, kid, where you from?" The wolf sighed, possibly angered by Humphrey's insensitive gesture.

"Oh, I-uh," He stuttered out his words having been cut off in his thoughts.

"I'm from Jasper Park, Canada."

"OH, Jasper huh?" He said nonchalantly "Well, if you're heading back there you've got a long ways."

'You shouldnt've stared like that' He scolded himself. He didn't mean to stare, but he hadn't seen a half blind wolf before.

He didn't know weather he wanted to go back home or now, if he could even bear to call it that anymore.

Against his better judgements he decided to ask for some kind of direction. "Um, what part of Sawtooth is this?"

"What?" The grey-eyed wolf reared his head back questioningly "Sawtooth?"

"Yea, you know Idaho?" Humphrey waved his paws around, as if he were drawing a picture of the area.

"Hah, you must be joking; Idaho, heh"

Humphrey raised an eyebrow at the tone, there was something he was missing, something big.

"If this isn't Idaho, then where is here?" He asked hesitantly.

The wolf just sat there for a moment, turning away from Humphrey and looking just up ahead to the lake. "This here kid... is Silver Glance Lake, Utah."

"U-What?" Humphrey yelled back.

The wolf shook his head and reached out forward into the empty air "Let me spell it out for you."

He proceeded to mock spell the letters.

He curved his arm, dipping it and bringing it back up "U, as in, you're nowhere near Idaho."

From there he swiped his paw once across and then down "T, as in, Takes a long time to get there."

With every word and motion Humphrey felt a sting in his heart and a misty haze form in his mind "A, as in, Canada's far away eh?"

Lastly the wolf traced two parallel lines and cut across them, finally staring back at Humphrey with a stern look "H, as in, Have a nice trip."

Humphrey looked down, he still had no idea of where that was.

"Look, kid" The wolf said, seeing him in a downtrodden state "Go north a couple hundred miles and you can get there."

Humphrey couldn't take it, small tears started forming in his eyes

"But-but I was only on the train for a day!" He said, trembling from grief and being homesick.

He heard the wolf shift next to him, but didn't bother turning to see what was going on.

"Kid, you must be a heavy sleeper then," He heard "It takes about five days to get here by train from here."

'Five days?' He knew it couldn't be true. He never missed out on anything for so long, but for him to have been on a train for five days.

Through his tears he didn't bother to want to hear anything that was said, if there was anything that needed to be said at all.

He fought back tears and carefully picked himself up. He didn't know where to turn to , but he had to leave.

Before he could take a step forward he felt a paw on his shoulder.

Humphrey turned to see figure of the wolf sitting in front of him with his paw outstretched.

"Wait, where are you headed?"

Though he couldn't make out any facial expression of the wolf, from his tone he seemed clearly concerned.

He took a moment from his sniffling to answer "T-to the one who gave me this."

He lifted his cast a bit hoping that he got his point across.

The wolf growled a little after hearing mention of cast "Those wolves, the ones down river?"

He nodded "I-i don't know of anywhere else to go."

He felt the paw being taken off his shoulder and heard the grass around him rustle "Humphrey; those wolves, they're-"

'Great, what now,' Humphrey wiped several tears away, trying to figure out what else could happen.

The wolf spoke again "They aren't as good as you think."

His voice trailed off, distant and full of deep sorrow.

He couldn't believe it, there was no way such a sweet girl would do something harmful.

"What about the one that did this?" He rose his cast once more in protest to the statement.

"Look pup, they have; hidden motives behind what they do." The wolf answered.

Humphrey finished wiping some of his tears away having re-welcomed his eyes back to the warming sunlight.

Humphrey heard the wolf mumble something to himself and rise to his feet.

He shook his head and started walking away "You're staying with me until that leg heals."

"What?" Humphrey tilted his head and felt himself more at ease though on the verge of tears.

He didn't even turn back but only walked further away from Humphrey "If you believe that you can survive out there without help then go on ahead."

Humphrey got the idea quick and followed suit. The wolf was a bit faster than him, but he managed to catch up, remembering something else on his mind.

"Oh, I never caught your name."

"Huh?" The stranger stopped and turned around with a puzzled look on his face.

Humphrey thought back to the way he was asked about his identity earlier "You have a name,right?"

The wolf started chuckling, and soon it turned into a deep laughter that defied all of his features.

"Ha, been so long since anyone asked that." He began, looking towards the mountain.

Humphrey's eyes trailed along with him landing on the peak. The sun had carefully crept its way there, resting atop the mountain, the misty-haze turned into a radiant orangish glow.

The wolf stared there, standing tall and proud.

"My name, is-" He took a single breath and from the corner of his golden-yellow eye He saw Humphrey, sitting bright eyed and patiently awaiting the answer.

The wolf smiled warmly "Earnest."

* * *

**Once again I apologize for not putting all of this in, it made more sense in the long run. (Once again thank you Country Wolf-Dog.)**

**A new poll is out on "Things you may have missed in A&O" vote if you wanna see what I've dug up.**

**A new project idea is out "Alpha and Omega: The Series" is up, check out the forum or community to see how to join.**

**I'm reworking "Alpha and Omega: The Week After" for its soon coming sequel.**

**Thank you to all of the readers for sticking with me through 25 chaps. If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	26. Pt1 Ch3 The Pack

**Chapter 3 and all is going well, I once again apologize to anyone who read and felt cheated by the previous upload of the last episode. Thankiez for anyone who read, and those who took the time to review. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**If you go alone will you reach your destiny?**

Humphrey looked on, awaiting the wolf's answer, "Earnest."

The moment he said his name Humphrey felt at ease. He had a name to go with the face finally.

This wolf, Earnest was willing to help him for the time being. He had so much on his mind, and this was just what he needed.

"Come on kid, daylight's burnin'," Earnest called back to him "I have things to do."

He had already moved further ahead of Humphrey; striding at a slow and even, and steady pace.

Through his thin complexion Humphrey could see more clearly a thin patch of fur missing on his right rear leg. He had a slight; jolting and jerking motion when he moved as well.

"You okay Earnest?" Humphrey said out of concern for the wolf's health.

"Yeah, never better." Earnest called back, continuing his pace.

Deciding it best not to continue pestering his elder Humphrey thought to seek more information through a small conversation or two.

"So, Earnest." Humphrey began taking a confident step forward "How'd you end up here?"

"Huh?" He called back, lightening his steps when he saw Humphrey lagging behind.

"You know, here in Utah?" Humphrey said hobbling up to him. Surprised that he was so patient with him.

Earnest paused for a moment and tilted his head far beyond them "Climbed over that mountain."

Humphrey looked on in awe "You climbed that? By yourself?"

The mountain was huge, much taller than what he and Kate had crossed over to get to the train.

"No," Earnest said back to him, picking himself back up and walking toward the lake.

"Oh, so... any family?" Humphrey was curious now, it helped him keep his mind off of his own problems.

"Look pup," Earnest yelled back without stopping "Enough with the questions."

"Sorry," Humphrey said, taking a step back "I was just..."

Earnest came to a stop at the foot of a hill and sighed, looking back at the downtrodden wolf.

He cleared his throat "I did have family, but that was all left behind."

Earnest looked around the area, off to a distant part of the woods "So why'd you leave Jasper?"

"Me?" Humphrey rose his head confused at the question.

Earnest glared back at him "I don't see any other wolves around do you?"

As much as he didn't want to answer, he had to get things off of his chest.

He closed his eyes, remembering everything that happened to him over the past few days, every mistake he made, and possibly the worst turn of his life.

"I couldn't protect someone." He said coldly.

"Hmm." Earnest replied "Kate right?"

"H-how'd you-" Humphrey shuddered at the mention of her name.

"Relax kid." Earnest waved his paw and shook his head "You called her name while you were runnin' in your sleep."

'Running in my sleep?' Humphrey thought, remembering the dream he had last night.

He was at the muddy river, trying to rescue Kate. She needed him, but if it weren't for him in the first place she'd never be in trouble.

"You left cause she died then?" Earnest said, interrupting his thoughts.

"No,no." Humphrey shot back unintentionally "I did because..."

He felt as though he were there again, that night of the storm. He had effectively caused them both to be in danger, and he knew she needed to get back home.

He told himself over and over to just get over it, but he just couldn't. It was Kate, the one he loved, he couldn't just toss that away.

But that thought came back, something he believed to be true "She didn't need me anymore."

"Kid," Earnest signed deeply "How do you know she didn't need you?"

"She-"

"Look Humphrey," Earnest cut him off "Everyone needs a friend, or family."

He walked beside Humphrey, looking toward the mountain "Nobody was meant to be alone."

Humphrey could understand all of this. Whenever he was by himself terrible things happened.

Him being nearly shot at the gas station, Kate almost falling off into the river. Only flukes and fails happened when he was alone, the bear, and even him leaving Jasper.

No matter what he did if he were alone he'd be bound to fail, his leg injury, him giving up. Even as far as him running into Earnest. Whenever he was 'Humphrey the Lone Wolf'; he could never, ever be a part of something greater.

"Humphrey." At the mention of his name Humphrey looked up.

He found himself staring deep into Earnest's eyes. He could sense just by the way Earnest looked at him that he was deeply concerned, though his blinded eye shown nothing but a glint and glimmer of the sun.

"Being a lone wolf," Earnest said slowly, and with a feel of deep regret "It's 'Not' as easy as you think."

* * *

**A new poll is out on "Things you may have missed in A&O" vote if you wanna see what I've dug up.**

**A new project idea is out "Alpha and Omega: The Series" is up, check out the forum or community to see how to join.**

**I'm reworking "Alpha and Omega: The Week After" for its soon coming sequel.**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon, after a bit of a break. Till Next Time DLW.**


	27. Pt1 Ch3 Ep1

**I'm back with an all new episode. Sorry about the absent streak recently, but I had to finish some other things, I'll be back on a regular schedule soon enough. Thank you for all my readers, and reviewers. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:Like a Family:**

Humphrey had taken a moment to get himself together. He was away from home and staying with Earnest, the wolf that had taken him in.

But in his mind he still wanted to go back to Jasper, back to Kate, back to his old life, but the chances of that were slim. He was in Utah now.

"Kid, you in there?" Earnest asked him again.

Humphrey jolted his head back up, shook himself out of his stare, and sat back down.

"Y-yeah," Humphrey said sadly with his gaze affixed to his cast "I guess."

Earnest sat across from him and sighed deeply.

"Look kid," He started, finding the right words for the situation "I know you want to get back home."

"What's the point!" Humphrey yelled, far louder than he himself thought possible "She has someone else now."

Earnest, though surprised that Humphrey would yell, kept his calm in the situation.

He saw Humphrey quietly, and weakly looking at his paws with his ears pinned to the back of his head.

"How do you know?" He asked calmly.

"Know what?" Humphrey said back, though his response was so feint Earnest couldn't really tell what he said.

Earnest had to get through to him, but he knew this wouldn't be easy.

"Look kid," He said carefully "Ask yourself this first."

He looked toward the mountain once more, took a deep sigh and continued "How do you know about the part you weren't there for?"

"What?" Humphrey tilted his head up, interested at the nature of the question

"You never know, she may have felt the same." Out of the corner of his good eye, Earnest saw Humphrey perk up, even giving a feint yet forced smile.

As a calm breeze passed by them, Humphrey felt better. He took in what Earnest had said to him, there may yet be a chance for him, but that chance was further away than he could have imagined.

"So what now?" Humphrey asked, there had to be something he could do, but he had to rely on Earnest's advice.

"If you want to go back," Earnest stood up and walked over to Humphrey, he stopped in front of him and pointed at the cast "Then you'll need to get that leg healed first."

Humphrey looked at it and sighed. The cast was the only memory he had of that girl, but Earnest told him she was in dangerous territory.

The girl was the one originally willing to help him, but, if he felt this way, could he still go back home? Kate was there for him when he needed, she didn't hesitate to save him. He wanted to thank the mysterious stranger, but he also knew in his heart that he loved Kate.

He was grateful for the help, but he wanted, no, had to know if Kate felt the same. For now, though, he had to be strong for her.

"I'll help you till then kid." Earnest said to him.

Feeling better about his decision Humphrey looked up and caught a glimpse of Earnest smiling. Though he could only see one eye, Earnest didn't seem like the vicious alpha he thought.

"Thanks." Humphrey smiled and got back up himself.

Earnest nodded and took a step facing away from the den. "I've got a few things to check," He looked over his shoulder, ensuring Humphrey was listening "So you're coming with me."

Without waiting to hear a response Earnest continued walking away from his hidden home. Surely enough he heard light footsteps trailing behind him.

Earnest proudly smiled and continued his trek. They walked for a short while, each passing step a constant memory of a day gone by for him.

Humphrey, however, got a chance to see everything he missed the day before. Every rolling hill, every green tree, every small cloud in the sky.

All that he saw in the valley was more amazing then the last. He quickly managed to relate some of the landmarks he had seen previously. He stopped when he saw a twisted tree in the distance, remembering what he encountered in its hollowed trunk.

"Hey, wait." He yelled to Earnest, causing the wolf to stop dead in his tracks and face him.

"What, what is it kid?" Earnest called to him in a fit of panic, taking a defensive stance.

Humphrey didn't know what to think about this, but he couldn't help but laugh inside.

"There was something in a tree up ahead." He said, trying to hide back a smirk.

"Hm?" Earnest saw Humphrey point at a very old looking tree just a few hills over. He sighed and abandoned his guard.

He shook his head, hearing Humphrey chuckle slightly. "Don't scare me like that kid." He said seriously.

Humphrey stopped his laugh long enough to see Earnest deep in thought. He walked up to the old wolf to further plead his case . "Okay, joking aside," he said mockingly "I did see something there."

Humphrey noticed Earnest didn't break his stare at the tree. He seemed to look at it with disgust, and even with his scraggly appearance, Earnest looked to be on his last limb.

"Woa, are you okay" Humphrey said, concerned for his health.

He got no response in return, the only thing that moved were Earnest's claws twitching, and scratching the dirt slightly.

Humphrey knew there was something clearly wrong, but he couldn't tell what.

"Earnest?" He said again. He didn't know if it were something he said, or if his new friend were having some kind of health problem.

Earnest grit his teeth and continued to stare at the tree. "What was it?" He asked with a tone of both anger and depression.

Humphrey took a step back. "I don't know what it was." He only caught a glimpse of it before, but he was too scared to find out what it really was.

"I got this stuck in my cast." He looked down and pointed at something jutting out of his cast as a souvenir of his encounter.

"Alright, stay here pup." Earnest didn't even bother to look back and hastily got up. Given that he had more experience and this was his territory Humphrey just nodded and sat down.

'I wonder what's gotten into him?' Humphrey thought. He hadn't acted like this until he mentioned the tree. Earnest was going there, but Humphrey couldn't help to wonder what had gotten him so upset.

* * *

**Okay, I know, I've been out of the loop of this story for a while, and those who like the story I must apologize, but bear with me just a bit longer as I get this back on track. More to come soon and plenty of "WOA I didn't expect that" twists. **

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O).**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	28. Pt1 Ch3 Ep2

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep. I'll be back on a regular schedule soon enough. Tomorrow I'll try to post ch7 of "The Week After", which I was supposed to do... long ago. Thank you for all my readers, and reviewers. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:Where One Belongs:**

Humphrey waited patiently for Earnest to return. The old wolf had gone to investigate some odd creature that Humphrey had told him about.

Humphrey knew it wasn't very far away, and only a hill or two separated them. It was bright enough out that Earnest should've been easily able to see what it was.

"What's taking him so long?" Humphrey asked himself. Earnest had been gone for several minutes now. Every moment he waited he felt as though Earnest may have run into trouble.

Whatever it was in the tree, it couldn't have been good. But without knowing what it was Earnest had chosen to go alone.

Thinking something may have happened Humphrey rose to his paws and took a hesitant step forward.

'What am I doing?' He thought. Earnest told him to stay there, but that kind of thing never stopped him before. Even going on this adventure didn't stop him, but why was he hesitant now.

'He could be in trouble.' He told himself, and accidentally took a step on his injured leg.

With one look down at his cast from the momentary pain his thoughts turned once again 'And you'd make things worse.'

With a sigh he sat back down and tapped his claws on the ground, hoping for the best.

Several more minutes passed and he was even more worried.

'I shouldn't have let him go alone.' He said under his breath. As he looked up he struggled with the idea that he was useless to help.

Suddenly just then over the hill that was blocking all but the top of the twisted tree, Humphrey heard something moving. Mentally preparing himself for anything he grit his teeth and saw a figure rise from the hills crest.

With sunlight beaming in his eyes, Humphrey saw more and more of the figure. Soon enough Humphrey could tell it was Earnest.

Humphrey looked up, relieved that he was alive, but he couldn't shake this nagging feeling that there was something off by the way Earnest walked.

For some reason Earnest looked saddened at his find. Humphrey, being the usually cheerful wolf, knew he had to help.

"So," He said as casually as he could, trying to hide his worry "Did you did you find out what it was?"

Earnest looked over his shoulder at the top of the hill and sighed.

"Kid, it was nothing." He said somberly wit a weak and faked smile "Just, some old bones."

"Oh." Humphrey eyed him for a moment, he knew something was wrong.

As Humphrey thought of a way to cheer Earnest up, he felt his stomach grumble.

Remembering the last thing he ate was bits and pieces of the rabbit, Humphrey smiled and looked towards the dead tree. 'Ah well, after a quick snack' He thought.

Knowing that it was just bones Humphrey started walking toward the tree "So can we eat them?"

"NO," Earnest shouted and dashed in front of Humphrey. From the sudden shock Humphrey took a few steps back, eventually falling to his hind legs.

Out of this reaction Humphrey looked up to see Earnest looming over him. He could see a deep, and unknown sorrow from his features as he stared into Earnest's lone eye.

"Leave them alone." Earnest said hastily. He knew he startled his guest, so he had to give his reason. "Kinda jagged, and splintered." He added quickly.

Humphrey continued to stare, he hadn't expected anything like that from hearing about nothing of importance.

Earnest, feeling guilty about this took a few steps back and faced away "You destroyed that tree though."

He waited for a moment until he heard Humphrey get back to his feet. "What'd you do to it?" He asked,

Humphrey recalled the previous nights mishap with the tree. Accidentally uncovering the bones while trying to find shelter.

"I uh, fell into it?" He said as he scratched his head, feeling embarrassed at the occurrence.

Earnest chuckled a bit at the statement, he himself couldn't believe it. "You fell, into a tree?" He said sarcastically.

"Well, yeah," Humphrey said nervously. "Ever tried running around in a storm."

"Plenty," Earnest rose his paw and pointed at his blinded eye "And I can still see fine."

Earnest saw Humphrey look around grimly at the statement, he knew he was right. "You're a wolf, Humphrey, we're adaptable." he stated matter-of-factly

Humphrey knew he wouldn't win this one. Even last night when he stumbled around in the dark Earnest seemed to know where everything was, and with one eye at that.

"I got here just fine." Humphrey retorted.

"One, that's not the point," Earnest shook his head and walked past him " And two-"

"Hm?" Earnest was interrupted by the sound of a low growl. Focusing his ears carefully he heard it come from Humphrey.

"Hungry huh?" He assumed, thinking that Humphrey wouldn't dare growl like that.

"Kinda." Humphrey smirked, knowing full well he couldn't keep putting off food.

Earnest gathered his thoughts, and he knew he would end up regretting his question. With a heavy sigh he cast his head skyward.

"Can you hunt?" He asked bluntly. Though he could already guess the answer he felt the need to give Humphrey a chance.

Slowly Earnest looked back at Humphrey, and sighed.

Humphrey had risen his casted paw, pointing at it and shaking his head.

"Let me rephrase that," Earnest got the point, but he wasn't about to let any excuse fly by so easily "When you didn't bust your leg, could you catch anything?"

In light of the question Humphrey lowered his paw and gave a nervous smile.

He knew it, but still he couldn't believe it.

"Kid,you're gonna have to pull your own weight around here." He said, feeling exhausted from just the conversation. "Or you'll starve." He added as a precaution.

"Wait!" Humphrey knew he wouldn't last long without help, so he did the best thing he could think of then.

"I'm an omega," He pleaded "I can't hunt."

Humphrey knew he couldn't really hunt. He left that for any of the alphas in his pack. Even when he only got the smallest of scraps he was happy without having to hunt for it.

Earnest shot him a glance that he hoped wouldn't soon be forgotten. He knew he had to help Humphrey understand what he meant, so he tried a different approach.

"Kid, I didn't ask you your rank." He said sternly "Did I?"

Humphrey shook his head though he still didn't understand what the problem was.

"You're a wolf, Humphrey, we hunt what we need" He continued "Rank only-"

Once again Earnest heard a low growl, but this time he heard and felt it come from him.

"Hungry?" Humphrey mocked, drawing away the attention from himself.

Earnest, now feeling hungry himself couldn't deny it. He had to hunt something, but he also had an injured wolf to teach.

He looked around and thought of a good place to get food. A place that didn't require Humphrey to run and chase something.

"Alright pup, I hope you like fish," He said with an idea set on their meal "Lunch is on me, 'this' time."

Earnest got back up and began walking. Hearing the eager clicking of footsteps behind him he knew he didn't need to tell Humphrey twice.

With a smile on his face Earnest proudly strode on, thinking back to days gone by 'It's how you learned, wasn't it?'

* * *

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O).**

**Also for those wondering, I should be posting "Alpha and Omega: The Week After" ch 7 by tomorrow. As such I'll be focusing on finishing that story, and quickly. So I had to finish this episode, but fear not I'm not on hiatus for any of my stories, stay tuned for more. **

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	29. Pt1 Ch3 Ep3

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep, and the kickoff for the Marathon week, as a 'comeback' for my absence. Anywho I'm trying to go for at least one ep a day, maybe more, but who knows? A big thank you goes to all my readers, you've all helped inspire me to make this story go on and improve. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:As the Weakest Link:**

It was just after midday in the valley. The sun had moved towards the mountain, causing it to glow a bit brighter than it did than earlier.

Two wolves that had taken residence in the valley's lands had traveled to a land unfamiliar to one of them.

"So, Humphrey," Earnest asked, making his way through several prickly bushes in his way "You know how to fish?"

He had gotten used to the bushes as he walked through. To him it was a common shortcut, but for Humphrey, he had no idea.

He tilted his ears around him to pick up the sound of his acquaintance fumbling behind in the bush.

"Yea-ow, it's-augh, easy." Humphrey called ahead to him. He had far less luck, or even skill in navigating through this thicket than Earnest. He may have been handicapped with his leg, but Earnest was partially blind.

Earnest, however, smiled and continued through the thicket. He was happy to be guiding Humphrey through his territory, after all they were hungry.

"It's a lot easier going back through, you know" Earnest said with a sense of pride. He himself reached the outside of the bush, and was waiting for Humphrey to show himself soon.

"You alright in there kid?" He asked, hoping that Humphrey hadn't gotten himself stuck in the bush.

"Couldn't-ah, be be-ter" Humphrey stammered as he navigated his way through. Several times he had gotten turned around while in the bush, but he was thankful he had Earnest's voice to guide him through.

Earnest merely smiled and waited patiently for Humphrey to get through at any moment.

Sure enough, several feet away, Humphrey emerged from the foliage victoriously.

"Easy, huh?" Earnest said, still chuckling.

"Yep." Humphrey shot back quickly. He was covered from head to tail with prickly leaves, and his fur was ruffled from all of the turns he made that got caught on the bush.

"Alright then," Earnest said calmly and waved his paw to encase the whole scenery "Welcome to the lake."

Humphrey followed his motion and immediately he was fascinated with the scenery.

"Beautiful isn't it?" Earnest asked solemnly.

The sun shone a dazzling orange hue that reflected brilliantly off the lake's surface. Humphrey could trace every tipple that flowed from the large lake, and its water was crystal clear.

From where he stood water constantly, and gently lapped at the edges of the shoreline. Even the trees overhead provided enough refuge from heavy sunlight to be both warm and relaxing.

"I don't think Jasper has anything like this." Humphrey called to Earnest, still gawking at everything he had seen.

Earnest picked himself up and walked towards the water as a gently breeze wafted by. He turned to see Humphrey still eyeing everything like a newborn pup. "Heh, you get used to it here" He said with an enthusiastic smile.

"Everything is great here." Humphrey quickly responded. He had everything he could think of there, everything that is except the longing he had for what he had left behind at home.

"Well, then," Earnest said, walking up to the edge of the water "How's about we start catching dinner?"

Humphrey nodded in response. He was getting hungry, and felt that this would be a great way to help him clear his mind.

Earnest motioned for him to hurry to the water, and Humphrey walked as quickly as he could given his own handicap.

Taking his time, Humphrey waddled into the water, it was cool and refreshing to the touch. Every step waved against his fur and caused small ripples in the surface of the lake. When he stepped, he could clearly see down to where a muddy cloud was kicked up from into the water.

"You eat what you catch Humphrey." Earnest called out, treading carefully a few feet forward, seeing several fish dart around just on the bank of the lake. Getting in position he stood still, and waited to make the first strike.

Humphrey smiled as he readied himself, his earlier attempts to catch fish was a fluke, but now given more time and space he felt more at east trying to have a second go at the sport.

The moment he saw something dart in front of him, Humphrey threw himself at it, splashing water in every direction and missing his catch.

Earnest, however was much calmer in his approach. Moments after he had waited a large shadow passed by his forelegs. Immediately after he had lowered his head into the water he snapped his jaws on the fish and brought it back to the surface.

'One!' He noted mentally, and turned to walk the fish back to the shore.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Humphrey struggle and thrash about, he knew it was going to be a long day.

* * *

About an hour had passed, and the sun was gradually going down. Earnest and Humphrey continued their efforts to supply their dinner.

Earnest had caught several fish by waiting carefully, and patiently to strike when the opportunity arose.

However, every time Humphrey saw a shadow in the water he hastily snapped at it. Each time he narrowly missed his target and only ended up bringing more water to the surface.

Earnest shook his head in mild frustration. He expected something more from Humphrey in their fishing venture, but he soon realized his mistake. "So, how many is that?" He asked.

"Eight." Humphrey said sadly. As many times as he nearly had a fish caught, it had so easily gotten away. Tired, hungry, and overall disappointed in himself, Humphrey held his head down in shame.

Sitting in the shallow water, he perked his ears up again when he heard another splash, closely followed by a dull thud. He tilted his head to see that Earnest had caught yet another fish.

"How are you doing so well?" He muttered, trying to forget his own hunger, and hopefully end this little side trip while he had some dignity left.

Earnest carried the fish back to the small pile he had acquired and turned to face Humphrey "When you're desperate to feed your fami-,"

He stopped just before he could finish the sentence, though he knew Humphrey would still want his answer. Earnest stood up and sighed, continuing the rest of his story.

"When you're desperate for food," He said sadly "You pick up on things quickly."

"Oh." Humphrey said back pitifully. Everything beforehand for him was easy, and Earnest had given him something to eat previously. But now he was told he needed to catch for himself.

Looking back to see Earnest stand by his caught fish, Humphrey had truly believed that he was able to catch a few for himself. In the end he realized that it wasn't easy, it actually took a great deal of effort to gain even the simplest of meals.

Earnest took notice of Humphrey sitting in the water. It was getting darker, and Humphrey hadn't caught anything. He couldn't blame him though, from what Earnest could gather, Humphrey wasn't very, trained.

'I know I said no, but,' Earnest shook his, knowing what he would have to do next 'He'll starve otherwise.'

"Look Kid" He spoke up, ensuring Humphrey heard him from the water. He pointed to the fish he caught and rolled his eye "This was supposed to be, 'eat what you catch'," After having his eye land on his fish, he quickly picked out a few fish and moved them into an equally sized pile "But here."

Humphrey continued to look on. Earnest, having just as easily fished out his own meal, gave nearly half of his catch to a near stranger.

Earnest watched as Humphrey struggled to get out of the water. He could only smile as Humphrey walked up to the fish that he was given as a meal, and sniffed at it.

"Really?" Humphrey asked, almost astonished that anyone would do this for him. He thought back, remembering the only other elder wolf that was this patient to him, Winston.

Earnest waved his paw, dismissing the notion that food would be this easy to obtain. "Just this once," He said reassuringly "I'll teach you how to next time."

Humphrey cracked a weak smile "Thanks, Earnest." He was grateful to have a mentor, it alone eased the burden in his mind.

Earnest was glad he could help. "No problem kid." He said sincerely.

Just before he took the first bite of his fish, Earnest looked towards where the den was located. The day was almost over, and he was beginning to feel tired. "It's gettin' dark kid," Earnest said informatively "Let's eat and head back."

Nodding in agreement the two wolves ate the efforts of their catch happily. With the sun beginning to set behind the mountain, they new they had little time before the valley became dark once more.

* * *

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O). **

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	30. Pt1 Ch3 Ep4

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep. Still going on with the marathon, expect more updates over the weekend. A big thank you goes to all my readers, you've all helped inspire me to make this story go on and improve. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:Unheard Song:**

Just as quickly as it had come in the morning, the sun made its final descent over the horizon. Its disappearance encased the valley itself in a vale of darkness, night had finally come.

For the patrons of the valley, only the light granted by the moon would be able to guide them at this hour. For many that light was a hope for a promise, but others, it was nothing more than a somber light of solace.

"Enjoy your fill kid?" Earnest called behind him as he navigated the gloomy woods with little light left to guide him. He knew the terrain well enough to find his way around, it was his territory after all, and he had to get he and his guest home.

Humphrey, having just eaten his share given to him by Earnest, was grateful to have someone to accompany him. As dark as it was, he could only see Earnest partially, so he listened out to wherever the wolf turned and he silently followed.

"Well, you know," He said sarcastically, trying to lighten the mood "I couldn't pass up free food." Before Earnest gave him part of his share earlier, Humphrey thought he wouldn't be able to find any food for another day or so.

Earnest shook his head at the reply. He couldn't blame him for having such a personality, for his rank it suited him better. "It's free the first go-around kid," Earnest said sternly "But honestly, you're gonna have to learn to catch 'and' get it open for yourself."

Humphrey felt the truthful sting behind these words as he walked forward. He hadn't been able to catch anything but a sprained paw and a few bruises in the last week.

This also was the second time Earnest had to help him get a carcass open, and he could almost feel the frustration Earnest had while repeating this process so he didn't starve.

"You comin' pup?" Earnest called to him from a good distance ahead.

Humphrey jolted and searched for the direction of the voice. He hand't noticed that he stopped walking forward until even Earnest's outline had vanished. From the thick coat of darkness, Humphrey lost sight of his new mentor.

Looking in every direction possible, Humphrey searched for the voice once more, but this time he heard nothing but the symphony of nocturnal creatures beginning to stir, and rough scratches on the ground from his own fear. "Earnest?" He called out in a fit of panic.

He turned to see behind him, only to find more woods and no Earnest in sight. 'What's going on?' He said to himself and continued to turn.

With the extra weight on his leg he felt himself panic more, as if something were attacking him then and there.

"I'm right here Humphrey." Earnest said disappointingly, causing him to jump slightly.

Humphrey re-corrected the direction he was facing. He heard light footsteps come towards him and he tried to keep his calm despite his episode. Just in front of him he heard the footsteps stop, closely followed by a long and drawn-out sigh.

"Kid next time use this." Earnest raised a paw in the dark lightly tapped the end of Humphrey's nose with one of his claws "Last time I checked your leg was the only thing busted."

Just before Humphrey found the wit to respond, a glint of silver light touched down around them. Humphrey tilted his head to the sky, part of the overcast clouds had made way for a sliver of moonlight to escape.

Everything, just as it had done before in the sunlight, glistened and danced under the new light.

By the time Humphrey had noticed ,once again, continued his walk towards the den.

Humphrey felt at ease sitting under the light of the moon. He always felt better after looking towards it at night, like someone was watching over him. As many good feelings it brought about, it reminded him of everything he had back at home.

Feeling a twinge of distraught, Humphrey flattened his ears to his head and continued his watch. 'I wonder if Kate's looking up too.' He asked himself, seeing Earnest nowhere in sight.

He could feel a sorrow, deep within his heart, and felt the pain of departed memories coming back to him. Unable to bear anymore weight on his shoulders, Humphrey tilted his head toward the only part of the moon he could see, still casting its silent glow.

He took a deep breath, drawing in memories as if it were the air itself. He narrowed his mouth and felt for a rhythm that he hoped would appear.

"What are you doing?" Earnest yelled out, startling Humphrey in the process.

Earnest sat just beyond the sight of the faint glow, the only thing Humphrey could see from him was a silver spec of his eye.

"Oh." Humphrey exclaimed and idly fumbled with his paws. "Well, back at home," He looked towards the visible part of the sphere and smiled "I would always how at the moon."

"I would howl if I was with friends," He said somberly "With, Kate."

Thought he wanted to find something more to say, He couldn't find anything, other than let his voice speak for himself.

"It isn't all that good of an idea here, Humphrey." Earnest calmly replied, and went about walking with a heavier sounding stride.

"But, why?" Humphrey asked, hastily. He had never heard of a wolf that didn't want to howl.

Earnest stopped for a moment and looked over his shoulder. "If there are any other wolves in the valley, then they might find where you are." He said sternly.

As these words set in, Earnest could see the difference in Humphrey's demeanor. Humphrey, in a matter of seconds, went to from a wolf that struggled to stay alive, to a defeated heap of despair.

Earnest felt terrible at even the sight. What took Humphrey days to do to himself, he had done in an instant. "Oy," He said disapprovingly and waived his paw in a 'shoo' motion.

"Go ahead, just keep it down." He called back and sat just at the edge of where the light faded into nothingness.

Humphrey perked up his ears at the mention of this. "You sure?" He shouted gleefully, though Earnest sat in silence.

'I guess that means yes.' He muttered to himself and regathered his thoughts.

Repeating his motions just as before, Humphrey turned to face the light of the moon. He took in a deep breath and released what he felt on his mind, and in his heart.

Not more than a moment after he tried this, he felt something was wrong. He heard something that sounded terrible, but Earnest was the only other wolf around.

"Augh, what was that," Earnest yelled and covered his ears "Was that your howl?"

Humphrey immediately halted whatever he had left of a howl, almost biting his tongue in doing so.

'Not again,' His mind told him 'Why now?"

Earnest uncovered his ears and placed his paws back to the ground. He hadn't heard anything like that before, and he was curious as to what happened.

"I tried to howl, by the stream," Humphrey stated, accusing himself of what he had done earlier as an atrocity "I...i don't know why it sounds like that."

"So that was you back at the grass plane then?" Earnest asked.

Humphrey didn't even bother trying to move, he had sounded that bad before, and to him it was even worse than not being able to howl at all.

Earnest took a few steps forward, now visible in the pale, and dying beam of light "I thought someone was being put down!"

Humphrey was upset and frustrated at himself even more. He couldn't explain it, his voice never sounded this terrible before. While still getting a mouthful from Earnest Humphrey grit his teeth and wrenched his eyes shut. "So why don't you try?" He shouted back.

Earnest began to get upset. "Kid." He shouted, and took a step forward. But from witnessing firsthand Humphrey's problems he toned his voice down a little. "Humphrey, look," He said apologetically "I've got no reason to howl."

Humphrey grit his teeth at the statement. "What do you mean?" He asked, upset that for once, he was terrible at something he had always done "Everyone has something to howl for."

Earnest felt a cold chill run down his spine at the novice observation. "Almost everyone!" He yelled.

From the pit of his stomach, Earnest felt a pain he had tried to long seclude rise again. Thought he knew Humphrey liked howling at the moon from observing him, Earnest felt only the opposite.

Earnest walked up to Humphrey and placed a paw on his shoulder in hopes to get his attention. When Humphrey responded by looking up with a single tear in his eye, Earnest knew it was time for him to act.

He raised his paw to a far off place where the moon barely touched. "You see that mountain Humphrey?" He asked in a very deep and distraught tone.

Not even waiting for a response Earnest continued. "My mate," He shivered at his own words "I lost her a long time ago."

Humphrey didn't know what to say to that, he couldn't imagine losing a mate. But he also remembered what it felt like after he had run away from home, and that he would never have Kate by his side.

"I've been in this valley for years Humphrey," Earnest struggled on to speak, every now and then stopping to take a breath for the next few words "And since then, I've lost all my reasons to howl."

Silently acknowledging that Earnest, half blind and older, had gone through more than he could imagine, Humphrey didn't know what to say about his story.

Moments passed and Humphrey saw Earnest begin to walk away, though for a moment he believed he saw something shine and fall to the ground from the older wolf's muzzle.

"Ya' know, most wolves have something to howl for," Earnest said as he slowly walked away "Do you know why?"

Humphrey was caught off-guard by the question "To, uh-."

"I don't really know." Humphrey tried to think of a reason for why he howled. Mainly he did it to have fun with friends, but with no familiar friends, that was a moot point. He, now and then, howled to entertain others, even pups if they were interested "It was something I always did at home."

"We howl to communicate with one another," Earnest went on with his lecture, not even showing signs that he was tiring himself out "We're wolves, that's what we do."

"But, Humphrey," Earnest took a step forward into the dark veil of the forest, and leaving Humphrey in the light cast by the moon "When you're a lone, there's no reason to howl."

"So I'll tell you this Humphrey," Earnest looked behind him, shining his blinded eye once more "Find your reason."

With that Earnest turned and paced toward the den, it had been a long enough day for him already.

"Wait," Humphrey called ahead of him, he wanted answers "My reason to howl?"

There was a slight pause and Humphrey heard the slight rustle of leaves. "I said, find your reason kid." He heard from Earnest.

Humphrey looked to the moon once more. Its calm and silent glow helped put his thoughts at ease. From hearing Earnest's words he felt that there was something greater that he was meant for.

"My, reason?" He questioned towards the light. He had never thought of things in this way before, but he had to find out what Earnest meant.

As Humphrey continued to look skyward he saw clouds threatening to take away what little hight he had left. Taking the opportunity to see where the den was, he had seen that he wasn't very far away at all.

Sighing a breath of relief, and feeling even briefly happy for even a dim light to help guide him, Humphrey slowly trekked his way back to the den.

'Find my reason,' He thought, getting close to the barrier of bushes that hid away the den 'Did he mean my place?'

'I'm an omega,' He scolded himself 'But, what does that matter?'

Pawing his way through the thicket and finding it easier to get through than last time even with the cast, Humphrey found his way to back to his new home.

It wasn't as dreary as it was in the previous night, calm, cool, and only the damp mask of rain were all that was left of the prior storm.

'My reason to go on?' He asked himself and crawled into the mouth of the den.

By the time he had gotten in, Earnest was already asleep at the entrance.

Humphrey had no light to go by this time, and thought he could hear Earnest breathing, he didn't want to inconvenience him again by rudely awakening him.

'I know I have a reason to go on.' Inwardly he was conflicted because he tried to find something he could call to for him to carry on.

In the dark of the den, Humphrey fumbled around for a moment before remembering where he slept before. Feeling out a wall, he inched his way over to a spot not too far away from Earnest.

Feeling the effects of sleep starting to kick in after his long day, and satisfied by his meal, Humphrey sat down and continued to think.

He smiled and yawned from what he knew he would have to do. 'I know what I have to do,' He curled his tail around himself and slowly drifted off to sleep 'I've got to tell Kate.'

* * *

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O).**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	31. Pt1 Ch3 Ep5

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep for the new year! Sorry I've been gone from this, had other things to finish first, but I'm still writing this, honestly, it's nowhere near over. I wanted to thank all my reviewers, my readers, followers, and fav's. A huge special thanks goes to Gordon Pasha and Country wolf-dog for inspiring me to make this a better story. Also to (omegawolf) only those stories that I've said are part of a series or a community are the ones that go together. ****Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:The Wise Old Wolf:**

A gentle breeze managed to break through to the hidden den behind the bushes. Resting on its whim was the scent of a new day, a new dawn, and a chance for a new start.

Humphrey, who had still been laying asleep and enjoying a particularly cool and comfortable spot in the den, was blissfully unaware of it all. He was far too gone in his slumber to even notice that sunlight was slowly encroaching upon him.

The constant beam of the bright sunlight that had already invited him to see the new day was close by, but he was too peacefully asleep to acknowledge it.

Ever so carefully the light crept closer and closer until it reached the tip of his paw to finally tell him to wake up.

He felt the gentle sunlight begin its work, and from where he lay in the darker colder part of the den, the rest of him wanted to be warmed as well.

Unknowingly in his rest, he began to squirm and lurch toward the pleasant warmth. He did this for a moment, but it didn't last long, he felt his arm start to itch.

He felt a small tingling course its way through to his shoulder, and even in his sleep he had to scratch it.

Without noticing it, he began to lift his paw to his nose, but he soon found it to be heavier than he remembered. Curious as to why his arm refused to move, he regrettably forced himself to open his eyes.

The first thing he was met with was the blinding light that poured into the den. He shut his eyes shuffled back a few feet, he was stunned by the light, but now at least he was awake.

"Wow that's bright." He shouted, rubbing his eyes with the back of his good working limb. He had realized that lifting his cast took a good deal of effort, but in his sleep it was if it were never there.

Finally rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Humphrey looked around to get his bearings for the new day. As he looked around, something felt off, something was missing.

He waited a moment to allow his eyes to adjust to both the light and dark surrounding him, and after being confident that he could see, he tried to find where Earnest was.

"Huh?" Humphrey asked himself as he checked for any sign that would tell his assumption otherwise. "Earnest's gone?" Sure enough, he could find neither head nor tail of his friend.

"I wonder where he went off too?"He asked stated out of concern.

Sure Earnest was the one who took him in, but that didn't mean that the old wolf wasn't in some sort of danger. Upon realizing the thought, Humphrey quickly pushed it aside. Earnest said he had been here a long time, he had to know the valley better than anyone else.

Giving the den a once-over he knew he couldn't be wrong this time. He traced his eyes everywhere and eventually landed his gaze on the mouth of the den.

"He'll be fine." Humphrey proclaimed. He had to admit, Earnest was resourceful; and to be a lone wolf, he was much more cunning than Humphrey ever was.

Thought Humphrey thought this, he still couldn't leave Earnest alone. He had thought a lot about what Earnest told him the previous day, and now given time, Humphrey knew what he wanted to do.

"Well-" He yawned and stretched off what little sleep he had left "-I can't sit here all day."

Smiling as he began to walk out into the day, Humphrey hoped that he could find not only the whereabouts of his friend, but the courage to tell him his plans.

He was both boastfully excited, and also terribly nervous. Even while feeling both of these feelings rise in his mind, he knew he had to go on.

Humphrey limped across the den and crawled his way out of the entrance. When he came face to face with the solitary foliage concealing him. Grinning from his anxiety, he carefully trotted his way through the hedge.

From the moment he stepped out of the bush hiding their home, he was greeted by the familiar sight of the valleys beauty. There were so few clouds in the sky that he could easily understand why he was awoken so easily, he could see the mountain in all its splendor watching over the inhabitants of its shadow.

The vast amount of trees swayed from a soft breeze that fluttered by, and under one such close-by tree sat the wolf he had been looking for.

'Yep, he's fine.' Humphrey sighed, relieved that his previous notions were put to rest so quickly.

"Early rise I see." Earnest called to him with a wide grin plastered on his muzzle.

Humphrey paused for a moment at the statement. From being around Earnest for just a few days he knew he was both half-blind and sardonic. So he couldn't tell if he was half joking or not.

Shaking his head and deciding not to dwell on the Earnest's possible joke, Humphrey pushed his way out of the bush.

"What time is it anyway?" He asked, while making his way to Earnest slowly.

He was hesitant to ask any questions because he didn't want to be on the receiving side of Earnest's fangs in disrespect.

Earnest heard Humphrey walk near him and could only chuckle at the statement "Same time it was when you woke yesterday kid."

'Noon again?' Humphrey thought. He had just sat beside Earnest and took in the same view, but he once again couldn't believe that he had overslept.

Earnest paid no heed to Humphrey's demeanor, but continued his watch toward the sky. "So, what's on your mind kid?" He asked.

Humphrey jolted out of his thoughts, he could say what he needed now, but he didn't know how.

"Things on my mind." Humphrey muttered. He had plenty of things on his mind, but there was just too much that he could think of and so little he could say that he defensively plucked out the first thought he could grab.

"Why you call me kid for one." He asked rather hastily, hoping that it would count as something worth buying him time.

By the time Humphrey was finished trying to think of another way to escape his true motives for talking in the first place, he heard Earnest cackling with laughter.

Humphrey had never seen this old wolf, and even fewer wolves he knew, laugh at something that wasn't even meant to be funny.

While seated next to Earnest during this time, Humphrey felt himself about to become ballistic with laughter, though he had no idea of why.

After having been winded by the sudden outburst, and finally calming down, Earnest resumed his calm demeanor.

"How old are you?" He asked in a still joking manner.

Humphrey, now understanding that Earnest wasn't always serious all the time calmed himself down a little. "A year and a half." He replied confidently.

"Heh," Earnest shook his head at the statement "Sounds like a pup to me."

Humphrey couldn't argue with his logic, he himself was considered young even in the confines of his own pack. He dared not ask the same question to Earnest in that case.

As he mulled over the next thought, Humphrey felt uneasy. As if a mix of things that didn't go together well at all was just given to him, he didn't know where to begin.

"Humphrey," Earnest sighed and spoke sternly, he got his attention and that was all he needed to set his point "I know there's something bothering you, beyond what you're telling me."

Humphrey couldn't hide much from Earnest, the old wolf was just too sharp for even his wits.

He could talk to Earnest, and he knew he could. But at the thought of discussing his self derived ultimatum face-to-face, he became more apprehensive.

Humphrey felt like it was time to tell the truth. In spite of that feeling that he would be rejected, he forced himself to speak.

"I-" He started, feeling the thought form into words.

"You?" Earnest replied and waved his paw in a 'hurry up' motion.

Humphrey had been put through so much that even now when he felt his answer, one thing above all pushed him to the final words.

"I want to go back," Humphrey exclaimed. He swallowed the lump in his throat and continued "To Jasper, to my home."

Earnest, after a long pause, let out a heavy, and troubled sigh. "Alright then," Earnest said solemnly and waved his paw toward the mountain "Go ahead."

"What?" Humphrey whispered. He hadn't thought of it as that easy to leave, but he didn't know what to say.

Earnest didn't care to see his expression, instead he continued to point. "You said you wanted to go, right?" He added

'Is he telling me to leave?' Humphrey thought. He couldn't leave now, with his leg the way it was. With Earnest telling him how far away it was, he knew he wouldn't get far without some sort of help; he had no idea ow where he really was.

Humphrey quickly realized his mistake and tried to back away from his statement

"But," He stammered "I-"

"Can't make it in your condition?" Earnest said, cutting him off.

Finally feeling as though he had a good enough standpoint and now ready to tell Humphrey what the best course of action was, Earnest turned to face the humbled Humphrey.

"Listen and listen well Humphrey." He said casually. He had already known Humphrey was a bit on edge from the trip there and wasn't used to living by survival, so it was his time to fix that.

"If you're going back then that's okay, I'm not going to stop you."

Humphrey perked his ears up at the statement, but still he knew he wouldn't make it on his own.

"Since I have nothing better to do," Earnest help but smile from the reaction he was getting "I'll help you, I told you I would."

Humphrey immediately turned to face Earnest when he said this. He didn't expect Earnest to just flat out help him so quickly, but he couldn't pass up the opportunity for help to get back to Kate.

"But from what I've seen, you're not ready." Earnest added quickly, he didn't want to give Humphrey the wrong impression on what was being said.

"What?" Humphrey retorted.

'Ready? What does he mean by not re-'

Before Humphrey could voice his opinion he was cut off by a pain in his arm.

Earnest, who had taken the liberty of tapping his paw against Humphrey's cast, had made his point clear.

"Like I said," Earnest scoffed and started walking away "Not, ready."

Humphrey saw how wrong his first assumption was, it's not that he didn't know that his cast was something that bothered him, but Earnest was far wiser than he could have ever imagined; there's no way that Humphrey could even attempt to get back home with the cumbersome thing on, like he was just told, he wasn't ready.

"Alright, I get it." Humphrey replied "What should I do then?"

By the time he had asked his question, Earnest was several feet away from him, and Humphrey knew when this happened, he was soon to follow.

"Getting back won't be easy kid," Earnest called out "But think of it as going forward."

"Huh?" Humphrey was caught off guard by the logic behind this statement.

Earnest had stopped walking and gestured for Humphrey to not only follow, but catch up.

Seeing that Humphrey would comply, Earnest waited patiently for the hobbling wolf to come closer before they departed.

"Once you know what you're up against," Earnest said as Humphrey walked beside him "It's easy to get back home."

Humphrey took this in for a moment, he had remembered how he had first learned how to navigate back to his own den when he was a pup, and from learning that he thought it would be nearly the same.

"I'll train you myself." Earnest chimed in, once again interrupting Humphrey's thoughts with some encouraging speech.

"Really?" Humphrey shouted excitedly "When?"

Earnest tilted his head and pointed deeper within the woods "We start now."

"That soon?" Humphrey whined and took a step back. He wanted the training, but couldn't see how training now would be beneficial.

Earnest turned back to Humphrey with a bit of frustration on his face. "Soon?" He asked.

"Kid," He could feel himself becoming agitated, but he knew that's the last thing either of them needed "With your mishaps, and lack of training,". Earnest calmed himself for the last bit of his speech and started walking towards the woods "It won't take any less then several 'weeks' to train you."

"Weeks!" Humphrey blurted out. He had to get home now, or as quickly as he could, he had to tell Kate, he had to let her know now.

Hearing the panicked and upset voice behind him, Earnest stopped.

"Humphrey," He shouted, immediately snapping Humphrey out of his panic "I may be old, but I can still teach you if you listen."

He had to get Humphrey to see what he meant, but he had to ensure that he would be heard.

Earnest pointed far off in the distance toward the mountain "If you want to blindly run around and never make it back home, then that's up to you."

Not hearing any other form of protest, or any indication of Humphrey walking that way, Earnest continued his pace to his next destination "If you want to be trained properly for your trip, and make it home in one piece then I suggest you follow."

Moments later he heard Humphrey awkwardly pacing himself to catch up.

Earnest grinned and kept walking "I've got three things to teach you, and we start in the woods here."

* * *

**Ok time to give out my 'tentative' plans. **

**Finish the next Ch of "Alpha and Omega: The Week After" By friday or saturday this week. Release final chapter of said story by the next day, Release sequel to said chapter of said story by the next day or so.**

**Finish another chapter or two of "Follow the Leader", as well as "Run Humphrey Run", over the weekend. If I manage to do all of this...**

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O).**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	32. Pt1 Ch3 Ep6

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep ! I wanted to thank all my reviewers, my readers, followers, and fav's. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:Lesson 1:**

The two wolves had been walking for about an hour or so, and Humphrey didn't know what to think of where he was now.

Earnest had led them to a place that was much different from what Humphrey expected, he could have never dreamed of coming to train, let alone in an eerie forest like this one.

It was just past high noon in the valley, or from what Humphrey could tell, it was close to that time. He could look up to a canopy of trees, but their branches for the most part blocked out sunlight from touching anything that moved below.

The ground was dry and mostly dirt where he had once seen grass growing everywhere, he was surprised that the trees grew to the height they did from this kind of terrain.

This forest was strange to him, it wasn't like the valley he had seen, this seemed almost desolate and isolated from what he had experienced before. It looked so different that he didn't even think he was in the same valley anymore.

They had walked, or in his case, hobbled into the densely wooded area. It was relatively quiet aside from the occasional chirp of a bird or the taps of smaller creatures scurrying away in fear of being spotted by the predators that were walking amongst them.

Humphrey slowly trailed along behind Earnest in his best attempt to keep up, he didn't want to lose sight of the one who brought him here.

"So, how's this alpha training going to work?" Humphrey asked. He himself was curious as to what Earnest had in mind for training.

He and Earnest had traveled a good distance away from the shelter of the den and what he had become familiar with. In the back of his mind, Humphrey wondered why he couldn't just train him closer to home.

He was reminded of what several of the alphas in Jasper told him of what the training regimen was. Just like him, they were all taken to a far away place to begin their training.

From what he heard it was rigorous physical exercise to the point of exhaustion, lots of being yelled at when you didn't do something correctly, and to top it all off if you failed the training you'd be stripped of your rank as an alpha.

Humphrey cringed at the thought, he knew training wouldn't be anywhere near easy for him as it was for anyone else.

While still deep in thought, Humphrey didn't even notice that Earnest had stopped walking. He continued at his crippling pace until he was only about a foot away from bumping into the old wolf.

"Alpha training?" Earnest turned to question him in disbelief. He said this just loud enough to startle Humphrey and force him to snap out of his focused state.

Humphrey, after realizing that he would have bumped into Earnest if he continued, stopped and nervously smiled in search for an excuse.

He gathered himself uneasily and stared into Earnests' one good eye.

"Y-yeah, isn't that what you brought me here to do." Humphrey stammered. He didn't know how to respond, and to him it seemed as what he heard was true, he was going to be yelled at a lot.

Earnest shook his head at Humphrey's statement. He knew that Humphrey was apprehensive and still didn't get it yet, he had to be taught the correct way or he wouldn't learn why he was here in the first place.

"I'm not training you to be an alpha, kid." Earnest advised him tranquilly, the moment he did so he could have sworn Humphrey didn't look like he was going to fall over from yet another cumbersome burden placed on his shoulders.

"I'm training you to survive." He said reassuringly with a half smile starting to form.

Though Humphrey smiled as well, he couldn't help but feel that he was in for the hardest time of his life.

Hearing no form of complaint, but knowing that time was of the essence, Earnest continued to walk forward across the desolate grounds of the forest, and Humphrey trailed along.

They continued at their slow and grueling pace for another few minutes until they came across yet another strange occurrence in this secluded area.

Humphrey looked on as Earnest casually walked up to a large and almost dome shaped rock. It was tall and, much like the rest of this forest, seemed out of place here in the valley from its pale white color.

"This should be far enough." Earnest stated. He walked next to the rock and sat beside it patiently awaiting for Humphrey to be ready.

Humphrey, being as nervous as he could be about this mystery training, inched cautiously towards Earnest. He knew Earnest would teach him, but he wanted to enjoy the last moments of freedom he could get.

Though he was anxious about the training, he couldn't shake the feeling of excitement in learning something new, he might be able to do this if he strived hard enough.

But another thought processed itself just before he could take another step.

Maybe what he felt was fear of the unknown. His own reservations and not knowing what lay around the bend were gnawing at his mind worse than he knew.

Earnest could see Humphrey's hesitation and despite his belief of helping, he couldn't waste any more time. Figuring Humphrey was close enough to hear him, he proceeded with his plan.

Earnest stood up once more and turned to address Humphrey directly. In the single moment he did this, he saw Humphrey nervously smile as if he were forcing himself to listen carefully.

"Alright, listen up pup," He said commandingly "Your sense of smell is terrible."

Humphrey looked back at Earnest as though he missed out on something important. "It's not all that bad." He replied defensively.

"Really?" Earnest asked sarcastically. He knew this defensive side would come about, and he knew how to dismiss it easily.

Hearing that tone of voice Earnest took with him, Humphrey understood he would be wrong no matter what he tried to do.

"Why didn't you pick up my scent when you got here?" Earnest stated, never taking his eye off of Humphrey for a moment.

Humphrey, not having the answer, averted his eyes to think of one. "Well, I," "um." He thought, and thought, but still nothing came to him.

During the time he saved Kate, he couldn't find her scent because of the heavy storm, and he barely managed to find her when the bears were chasing him to the mountain top.

When he got here he had never smelled anyone else around, he didn't know whether it was because he didn't try, or because his ability to do so was weakened.

Figuring he couldn't find his way out of this one, Humphrey shook his head weakly, Earnest was right.

Seeing Humphrey admit that he had some improving to do, Earnest simply nodded in acknowledgement "We work on your sense of smell first."

Earnest turned to face the oddly placed rock and began to speak.

"Your ability to smell is your first line of defense, without it you're worse off than a blind pup." He said in a manner so calm that his voice trailed off and vanished just before it could echo.

'First line of defense, huh?' Humphrey thought and couldn't believe the idea. He had almost always relied on being able to see to get around, and he only used his nose when it was something strong or even odd smelling that could easily be trailed by anyone.

Inwardly he was skeptical, but he had to listen to Earnest or the training wouldn't end.

Smiling and nodding in light of what he was told, Humphrey felt better about what his lesson might be.

Earnest smiled warmly back at Humphrey, he knew he wouldn't like it, but he was sure he was ready for this test.

"I guess you're ready then." Earnest said proudly.

"So what do I need to do?" Humphrey asked, he wanted to get this over with.

A moment of silence briefly passed between the two. Humphrey was on edge, while Earnest stood deep in thought.

"I want you to take in the scent of everything you can." Earnest explained calmly.

Humphrey heard this, but he didn't exactly understand it. He was about to give Earnest a questionable look, but he knew every time he did something like that, it came back on him.

"Okay." He said sarcastically, though as he did so he heard Earnest sigh heavily in disappointment.

Feeling a twinge of guilt, Humphrey tried to bypass that with the task he was given. He sat down and raised his head to get a whiff of the area.

After getting a good sense of what was there, and out of the corner of his eye catching glimpses of the forests' inhabitants, Humphrey gave his response "I can smell some birds, some squi-"

Before Humphrey could get another word in, Earnest had cut him off.

"Wrong!" He exclaimed, just loud enough to catch Humphrey's attention.

"Humphrey, I know you were looking at them." Earnest chided, he saw Humphrey wasn't trying hard enough "Try again."

Humphrey didn't nod or respond this time. Instead he repeated the process and ensured his eyes were closed again. He took a small whiff of the area once more and found nothing different.

Not catching anything else, Humphrey opened his eyes and looked around.

"It smells the same as it did before." Humphrey said. He couldn't place his paw on it, well his good one anyway, but he figured there was something obvious that he was missing.

Earnest tilted his head to the sky in the same fashion that Humphrey did.

Humphrey didn't know what to make of this gesture. He guessed that he was either being mocked, or Earnest was checking behind him to correct him.

"Lets try something different." Earnest said, throwing Humphrey off from what he expected.

Earnest turned to face Humphrey and motioned him to 'calm down' gesture, he didn't want to give away his test so easily.

"Here's what I want you to do." Earnest began.

"Close your eyes, breathe deeply," He pointed towards the canopy of trees and continued "Count to three, and smell what you can't see."

'Smell what I can't see?' Humphrey questioned himself. Of all the things that Earnest had told him, this by far was the most absurd.

Immediately after he thought this, he remembered how now only did Earnest help him the whole way, but how disappointed Earnest was when he didn't try.

He came to the conclusion that it wouldn't be that bad to try to find something without seeing it first, he was a wolf after all.

Humphrey figured he could do better and calmed himself down to do exactly what Earnest had told him to do.

He quickly shut his eyes and breathed rather fast, and despite the instruction, it was the same yet again.

Frustrated that he wasn't getting it right, Humphrey silently scolded himself. Earnest told him what to do, and he still got it wrong.

"I still don't get it," Humphrey whined, turning to ask Earnest what his course of action should be "How-"

When Humphrey looked towards where he saw earnest just a moment ago, he was gone and there was nothing but dirt in his place. Not a single trace of the wolf was in sight, it was just Humphrey and the woods now.

"Earnest?" Humphrey asked in disbelief, he had only been looking away for a moment, and now Earnest was gone.

Fearing the worst, Humphrey rose to his feet and began to walk around. The first place he could think of was on the other side of the large rock.

'Maybe he's over there.' Humphrey said to himself in an attempt to ease his nerves. He rounded the structure, and lo and behold he saw nothing there. It was somewhat taller than he had imagined with several ridges on it, but other than that, no trace of Earnest.

'Where'd he go?' Humphrey thought.

He didn't like the thought of any of this, Earnest had just gotten up and walked, or possibly ran away. Humphrey couldn't see him anywhere and panic was soon to ensue.

"He was right there." He told himself.

In just a few hours it would be dark, and as he was unfamiliar with this place, Humphrey couldn't get back to the den if he tried; this area was much larger than he had hoped for, he'd get lost quickly.

Without Earnest to help him get back, he'd be alone in the dark, and that's not something he had accounted for when he was invited to stay.

"Earnest!" Humphrey yelled as loudly as his lungs let him. He was scared that Earnest had brought him here to abandon him during his training, but deep down he knew it couldn't be true.

Throwing rationality away, Humphrey scanned the area in hopes to find Earnest and fast.

There wasn't much that he could see besides the trees and their gnarled roots jutting out of the earth from here to the horizon.

Against his better judgement, he began to hobble towards the trees shouting "Ernest, Earnest!" from his panicked state.

He tried to jog around, and even thought he did, it was pointless. Every which way he turned it all looked the same to him. There weren't any details to landmarks that he had seen in coming this way.

After replaying all of these things in his mind, Humphrey was sure he wouldn't find Earnest any time soon. With his leg now in the cast, Humphrey couldn't even keep up with Earnest no matter how hard he tried.

He continued at this for a short while until his voice started to become hoarse. He quickly realized that his pleads for help went by unheard.

Several times as he walked, he thought he saw the wolf in question, but every time it was just his mind playing tricks on him.

In the end, he hadn't gone as far as he thought he did, and was still within eyesight of the large rock. As tired as he made himself, he walked back to it and sat beside it, Earnest had left him there on purpose.

'I don't believe this.' Humphrey screamed at himself 'He just left me here.'

He was supposed to be training, but he wouldn't even be able to get back home now, to Jasper or his new abode. If he couldn't find his way out of here then now would he find Kate?

If he had a better sense of smell he could have easily find out where Earnest had gone off to. Then Humphrey understood something.

"Wait a minute," Humphrey turned his head to where Earnest had sat before the large rock "What did he say?"

As he watched, he could imagine Earnest sitting there guiding him in what to do in the situation and he brought what he was told to recall.

'Your ability to smell is your first line of defense,' He could hear the words as clear as day 'Smell what you can't see.'

The more he thought about this, the more Humphrey understood what he was being taught. Earnest was right the whole time, he wasn't training him to be an alpha, but instead to survive on his own.

Practically beaming at the thought and encouraged to do better, Humphrey calmed himself down.

'Let's try this again.' He whispered to himself and took one last glance at his surroundings 'What I can't see.'

He thought of how he could horribly fail, but in spite of that, he wanted to try, he had to get back home. If he didn't try, then it would be as if he had given up already.

Readying himself, Humphrey repeated what he remember Earnest told him about his sense of smell.

'Close your eyes, breathe deeply,' He shut his eyes tightly so that he couldn't see even the faintest light, and he slowly drew in as deep of a breath as possible.

'Count to three, and smell what you can't see' He repeated, and from then he counted.

'One,' The moment he drew his breath Humphrey could smell what he did earlier, the faint scent of forest critters scurrying about, but that was not all.

'Two,' He could smell his own scent, and the faint aroma of the various leaves that fell from the trees. But he could smell something else, there was something there, it lay hidden amidst all he could smell.

'Three,' In the last second when he finished drawing his breath, he could swear he recognized the scent. It was oddly familiar, and it was close by.

Curious as to what the strange scent was, Humphrey opened his eyes and observed where it originated from. It was only a few feet away so he walked forward a bit.

'That's odd' He said to himself when he came to a spot of dirt on the ground. The scent came from the same spot where Earnest stood a while ago.

'I'm either getting the hang of this or hopeless.' Humphrey thought to himself. If he didn't keep his sense of humor at this time then he would have believed he was crazy.

'Okay, now what.' He asked. He had deemed this as Earnest's scent, and now with its identity in his memory, he was determined to find his mentor.

Thinking the best way to find him was to simply follow the trail, Humphrey lifted his nose to the air once more. He carefully repeated the process, step by step, the way he was shown and was honestly baffled from what he found.

"What?" He cried in disbelief.

With a look of sheer astonishment, Humphrey walked around the oddly placed rock. Getting to the other side, he casually sat down as if nothing happened at all.

'He was right,' Humphrey scolded himself 'My senses are terrible.'

He looked up towards where he was sure the scent was coming from and sighed.

"You can come out now Earnest," Humphrey said with not only a grin forming on his muzzle, but also a stray tear because to him it was actually quite funny now "I get it."

Sure enough, the moment he said this, Humphrey saw a pair of ears stick out from behind one of the rocks many ridges.

Soon, the entire form of his mentor appeared, standing tall and smiling at him.

Earnest had managed to climb up to it and hide there, and from the angle he sat at, it didn't look as if the rock had a large chunk take out of it at all.

"Ha," Earnest laughed "Kid you took longer than I thought."

Earnest continued to beam with joy, he reached behind him to grab something hidden with him in the alcove of the rock.

He then looked for a spot next to Humphrey, and carefully jumped down with a small object in his mouth.

Humphrey shook his head, he was sure he wouldn't forget this lesson. Earnest was right, the answer was more obvious than he thought.

"So you heard me the whole time?" Humphrey questioned. He now knew Earnest didn't abandon him, but he wanted to understand why he chose this route in teaching him.

Hearing this, Earnest dropped the object he war carrying. Humphrey got a good look at it before Earnest started talking, it was a large squirrel

Earnest didn't feel terrible about his decision, but had to give his explanation. "Humphrey," He began "If I didn't leave you wouldn't have pushed yourself."

When Humphrey heard this he felt happier, there was no mistaking it, he was getting better.

Not skipping out on his test details, Earnest continued.

"I did jump down to get this." He said, pointing down to the squirrel.

Humphrey mentally slapped himself with his bad leg from not noticing that. He did see Earnest there, but he was hunting and moving quickly so he wouldn't be easily found.

"But you found me just when I was about to fall asleep." Earnest concluded with a deep laugh.

Humphrey felt himself about to join in, but from all the yelling he did earlier, he just didn't have the energy. He wanted to laugh from it all, but when he tried, he had only let out a yawn.

Feeling that it was time to end things for now, and it was starting to get darker, Earnest gave one last congratulatory speech.

"Humphrey," He said aloud "Having the memory of a scent can be a powerful tool for you to use."

Humphrey understood this well, had he not been able to find Earnest without seeing him, they would have been here for hours as Earnest would have been asleep.

"So what now?" Humphrey yawned.

Earnest, after seeing Humphrey yawn was on the verge of mimicking the action. He had been out here earlier, and was getting tired himself.

"For now, we head back." He said, stifling a yawn.

He was sure his lesson was successful, and that Humphrey learned what was needed. He looked down to the squirrel and had one last thing to say.

"And Humphrey, starting in the morning, your goal is to find me." Earnest added seriously. He had to give Humphrey motivation, but if he just did everything for him, then there would be no point in teaching.

Earnest reached down to grab the squirrel. He stood up and proceeded back down the path that they had taken to get here, and with each step he sniffed the area to gain minuscule traces of the scent trail they had left behind.

Humphrey silently nodded and stood up to follow Earnest back to the den. He could smell the trail that they took now, but he wasn't too keen about running around in the dark still.

As he walked, Humphrey wondered about what his next lesson would be.

'Can't be that hard now,' He thought 'Even if I can't see it.'

* * *

**And here's my announcements!**

**On a bit of a serious note, one of my best friends recently went into boot camp for several months. We went to school together and had great times, and we were always gaming, chatting, helping with the animal-shelter we volunteered at, or creating ideas. He's practically like a brother to me. To be honest, a lot of the reason of why I didn't update on time was because I wanted to be able to hang out with him as long as I could, when you've practically grown up with a true friend its hard to adjust to anything else. Now that he's going there, I've decided to re-up my writing. I'll be updating more, and sooner in honor of my friend. Also I'm retrying my hand at drawing (I was ok in school but then I got flash and photoshop and my artistic hand-drawings died sadly).**

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O).**

**Also for those wondering, I should be posting "Alpha and Omega: The Week After" ch 8 by Saturday. So I had to finish this episode, stay tuned for more. **

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	33. Pt1 Ch3 Ep7

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep. I've been away from this story for far too long and now we have its return. News and updates and other interesting stuff at the bottom. As we head into the last phase of Part 1, expect to see more updates soon! Also**** a huge thanks to all my reviewers, my readers, followers, and fav's. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

* * *

**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:Lesson 2:**

"I'm late!" Humphrey shouted to himself as he scrambled to find Earnest.

He had awoken from a deep and quiet sleep in the den that he could call a temporary home, and had realized that the old wolf wasn't there.

While he had found it common for his absence, this time he knew this was different. He knew he had to find Earnest, and fast.

Just the day prior as Humphrey could recall, Earnest had given him the task of seeking him when he had awoken.

The task was simple enough for any wolf, but given the fact that Humphrey's sense of smell wasn't up to par it was more difficult.

Thankfully, on the same day that Earnest had given him this task, he had also taught Humphrey a valuable lesson on how to easily track scents.

Though Humphrey was grateful for the lesson and being one step closer to being able to survive on his own, he was still a long ways away from even thinking to do such anymore.

"I gotta find him." Humphrey whispered as he walked towards the mouth of the den, his voice reaching him from the echo and repeating itself over and over in his mind.

As he walked, he had to do so slowly as not all of his legs were in tune with his otherwise perfect health.

He didn't like having the cast on his leg, but in the end he couldn't argue that it was useful. If he hadn't had it on, then he doubted that he would have been able to even able to stand.

He paced himself to the outside, gaining a searing sting in his eye from the bright afternoon sun.

"Ah, always in the eye." He yelled, halting himself and rubbing each of his eyes with his free paw.

It was as bright of a day as any in the valley. The air was crisp and the sun gently and graciously shed its warmth and light on its patrons.

Humphrey, however, was less enthusiastic. He had somewhere to be right now and was already blinded by the natural beauty that he had so enjoyed before.

Remembering his previous lesson and knowing that Earnest wouldn't just make things easy for him, Humphrey shook off whatever sleepiness he felt left in his eyes and lurched forward.

He nearly fell through the bush in his scramble to see where Earnest had gone to, but it wouldn't matter if he couldn't find his scent in the first place.

Reaching the outside of the bush, Humphrey was met with a far shadier part of the area as a few tree s cast their shadow upon him. Relieved for even a moment, he sat there to regather himself to what was said the day before.

He remembered what Earnest had taught him, that he would need to find him by tracking his scent; something that Humphrey had barely done before, but was starting to get the hang of it.

Humphrey smiled a little as he thought back to how easy the lesson was in hindsight. He was being trained without the hardships and strenuous tasks that the alphas back home went through.

Upon realizing that his thoughts were for home, Humphrey's smile slowly vanished as if it were never there to begin with.

In the short time he had been here, he was missing his home immensely. He had told Earnest that he wanted to go back, but his response was to be trained to survive.

Inwardly he sighed as he wanted more than ever to get back to his pack. As he thought to what he was told, he grimly looked down to his cast.

It was there as both a gift and a painful reminder to his life as of now. By no means had he been handed everything he had ever wanted, but also he knew that life wasn't the worst for him.

He would have to get through Earnest's training and be able to at least keep up with the old wolf, and the thought of having to take lessons to get the help he needed seemed much lighter after that.

Even with getting some training in, Humphrey understood that Earnest's lessons were what he needed in order to survive long enough to get back to Jasper.

Soon after coming back to his senses and realizing that he had been sitting there and staring at the open sky for a matter of minutes, Humphrey shook his head and focused on what his task was.

'Okay, I've got to find him by noon.' He said to himself and went over his instructions on how to track scents easily.

Humphrey shut his eyes and began sniffing at the air lightly. He easily recognized Earnest's scent in the myriad of smells that he had taken up, and a several others he hadn't originally smelled at first.

As he took in the scent further, he found himself pointing in a familiar direction. Unmistakably, it was where he had first told Earnest about the creature in the tree.

Humphrey was puzzled as to why Earnest may have gone there, or if his ability to track was off. So just to be sure, he whiffed at the area again.

Much to his shock, the scent was the strongest coming form that direction. He couldn't understand why Earnest would be over there.

'I guess he went to check on it?' Humphrey muttered to himself. The looks of whatever died there was horrible, and Earnest had told him that the bones were jagged and shattered.

Humphrey shrugged his shoulders, it wasn't his place to question Earnest's interest in the matter, but it didn't exclude him from finding the old wolf wherever he may be.

He shook off the feeling of remembering the horrid thing and slowly walked towards where he knew Earnest would be waiting.

He walked across the familiar territory, seeing all sights that were so common to him the days before. They were all magnificent as ever, but he still missed home.

Humphrey sighed and looked at the wide open sky as he had seen Earnest do so many times before.

"Two more lessons." Humphrey said aloud as he continued forward and up a steep hill. He wanted these lessons to be over, but he still had to complete them; Earnest didn't seem like the kind of wolf to take shortcuts.

Humphrey continued down this path for several minutes. Having mentally mapped this small portion of land, he knew where he needed to go to find this strange landmark.

He stopped when he came closer to the hill that the tree stood just beyond. He didn't like being there, but he had no choice, or so he believed.

"He should be right over here." Humphrey said to himself. He wanted to make sure he was right, but he wouldn't have minded being wrong for now.

He took in a whiff of the air and was sure he had sniffed Earnest out quickly.

Humphrey sighed as he mentally prepared himself for whatever hiding spot Earnest had chosen this time, it wouldn't be easy.

Slowly and silently, Humphrey walked up the hill. He looked in all directions that he could, to try to find Earnest. But once he got to the top of the hill, he was surprised.

Earnest was sitting under the old tree, casually looking up at the sky. He was facing away from Humphrey and seemed to be idly mumbling something.

Though he didn't expect to find Earnest so quickly, Humphrey decided not to complain. He still managed to track the scent, and to him that was enough for now.

"There you are." Humphrey exclaimed gleefully. He was glad that his training had paid off, and that it was relatively easy to find Earnest this time.

Hearing someone behind him, Earnest quickly turned around. He was relieved to see Humphrey slowly walking towards him.

"Took you long enough, pup." Earnest replied and continued to watch the clouds.

As eager as he was, Humphrey cautiously approached Earnest. It wasn't that he was afraid by any means, but he moved slow in case his second lesson was a skirmish like the ones he had been told of by alphas back home.

Fighting was one of the things that Humphrey had never really liked as he went for a more peaceable approach to a conflict while, from his previous attack from Earnest, he learned that at times fights were inevitable.

"So you weren't hiding?" Humphrey questioned. He was sure that Earnest would be in a very unique spot as before, but he didn't know why he chose this tree instead.

"Humphrey, trust me," Earnest tore his gaze from the open sky and stared directly into Humphrey's own eyes "If I were hiding, you wouldn't find me."

Humphrey took a step back and grinned awkwardly. He wasn't afraid that Earnest would lunge at him as before, but he just didn't want to give him the chance if he were upset.

'Not that I'd get far anyway.' He thought.

Having Earnest stare at him for an awkward moment, Humphrey averted his eyes. Being an omega he was used to looking away when he was confronted by a higher ranking member.

'It's just Earnest.' He said to himself as a reminder, he had never had Earnest blatantly scold him for such a gesture, but still he couldn't bring himself to look back.

"So, what's the lesson this time?" Humphrey asked quietly. Though he still feared a fighting lesson, his concerns for getting back home in one piece still stood higher.

Earnest quietly stood up and stretched. He as tired already, but he had work that needed to be done.

"We need to work on your stealth." He yawned, taking a few steps toward Humphrey.

Humphrey tilted his head up questionably.

"M-my stealth?" He repeated.

Humphrey knew he wasn't always quiet when he needed to be, and that he usually ended up giving his position away. In fact, the only few times that he could remember being absolutely quiet were the times he snuck up on Kate.

"Remember yesterdays training?" Earnest called to him.

Humphrey froze in mid step, how could he ever forget that training session. It wasn't that it was hard, but it was something that he never would have never considered doing.

"The part where I thought you left?" He remarked wittily.

Earnest didn't stop, but instead began laughing in his stride.

"Sounds about right," He called back "But today will be a different, it'll be dangerous."

Hearing the difference in pace, Humphrey abandoned his joke and caught up to Earnest quickly. Though he was still in sight, Humphrey didn't want to risk having to seek the old wolf again, he knew Earnest would make it more difficult to find him again.

He also enjoyed danger to an extent, he was adventurous at heart. But Earnest had just told him it would be 'dangerous', and in his line of work as an alpha, that could be costly.

Earnest walked forward and looked over his shoulder to say "For one, you will be using your nose just as much as your ears and eyes this time."

"My eyes and ears?" Humphrey repeated.

Earnest didn't pay attention to the protest, he just slowed his pace to allow Humphrey time to catch up.

"You need to listen more carefully," He chided "The other day, when you came to the valley, I heard a gunshot."

Humphrey cautiously walked behind Earnest. He remembered the whole terrifying experience and he was glad that he wasn't chased.

"Yeah, some humans found me." Humphrey replied.

As much as he hated admitting it, Humphrey felt more so proud that he was able to escape yet another fired shot. Kate wasn't there to defend him then, but he made it out alright.

"You didn't hear them coming did you?" Earnest asked.

Humphrey thought back to what had happened. Much to his embarrassment, he was preoccupied with food. Had he not been so busy eating, he wouldn't have been shot at.

"No," Humphrey began "I kinda had my eyes set on a snack."

Earnest stopped for a moment, he couldn't believe it himself, but then again Humphrey had been known to make mistakes like that.

He waited for Humphrey to catch up to him, and when he did, he motioned towards a much further area.

"Your fluke aside, you still somehow made it to my den without me noticing you." Earnest explained.

Humphrey looked where Earnest was pointing, a large hill situated up much further ahead. It bathed in the bright orange that much of the valley had, and to his guess, that was their destination.

"That was an accident." Humphrey rebutted. He had never meant to walk into Earnest's den, but the fact remained that he did, and he was happy that he did.

Earnest quickly slipped by and continued his approach toward the hill. Daylight was burning and he had a mission to accomplish.

"Yes it was, but what matters is that I didn't catch it quickly." He reminded Humphrey, and it was true, Earnest hadn't realized there was an intruder until it was too late.

Finally reaching the base of the hill after several minutes of chat-less walking, Earnest turned to face a very slow and anxious looking Humphrey.

He noticed his silent and fearful approach, but he didn't bother to ask what was wrong. He all too well knew that fearful look.

With a smile on his muzzle, he turned to the top of the hill and jogged straight towards it.

"Kid, today we'll be doing field work." He explained.

Humphrey didn't get it.

"Field work?" Humphrey shouted. He didn't know what 'field work' meant, but he already didn't like the sound.

"Alright, here's lesson two." Earnest called back towards Humphrey.

He had to wait until he made it even partly up the hill before he gave his speech, and he knew he wouldn't like this one.

Humphrey slowly paced up the hill. He wasn't tired from the walk, but he was still nervous as to what the lesson actually was.

He dared not voice his concern in case Earnest got upset and turned the lesson into a "running" test. Still, Humphrey walked towards his uncertain future.

Just before he got to the top where Earnest sat tranquilly, he heard a noise he had never heard before. It was a deep bellowing that echoed over the area, it was some creature calling for an unknown reason.

Humphrey jumped the moment he heard it.

"What was that?" He shouted, darting his head in all directions.

Earnest stood at the top of the hill and began to laugh. He didn't expect Humphrey to be this startled from the sound, but he couldn't help but to get a kick from the reaction.

"That, would be the herd." He called down to Humphrey and motioned for him to follow.

Though nervous as to what it was, Humphrey slowly trailed along and soon caught up. But what he saw at the top of the hill made him feel both at ease and as if he needed to take a few steps back.

Smiling as widely as he could, Earnest walked around and sat on a large rock that overlooked the massive field.

"Welcome to the field kid," He said and began his watch "Plenty of deer year round, and this is only part of the herd."

Humphrey was astounded. He had just thought they were going to spend the day hiding somewhere in a field, but this was different.

Just before them lay a tall and luscious grass plane. It was nearly identical to the tall grass that Humphrey had been through before, but this field was full of deer.

Humphrey hadn't had seen many deer where he lived as it was colder and more suited for the caribou, but even Jasper didn't have this many caribou in its valley.

From the point that he could see the edge of the rock unto a vanishing point miles away, Humphrey could see deer of all sizes and shapes. He wondered then, why Earnest had brought him here.

"We're going to stay here for the afternoon, and stalk the deer herd." Earnest stated, crossing his arms and resting atop the rock.

He had taken a liking to this activity and though of it as relaxing, but his lesson still stood, and he had to keep watch.

"So why are we watching them?" Humphrey asked curiously. He sat atop the rock and tried to find something that he could do to pass the time.

Earnest carefully tilted his head and gave Humphrey a stern look, he wanted him to understand what they were doing here, but at the same time he couldn't risk them both being caught by the deer.

"We aren't just watching." Earnest replied.

Humphrey didn't know what to think. He thought they were supposed to be working on his stealth, but here they were in front of deer. At this range, he began to wonder what Earnest meant by stealth.

A panic soon washed over him.

"So, we're hunting them?" Humphrey speculated. Even above fighting, he had feared having to take place in a hunt, he just didn't like the idea of risking his life in that sense.

Hearing Humphrey talk this loudly, Earnest quickly placed a paw on his snout to stop him from giving away their location. He meant no harm, but he didn't want either of them to return after being trampled and impaled.

"No, Humphrey, neither one of us is hunting them." He said calmly.

Seeing Humphrey relax more, he let go of his muzzle and prepared himself for any question that he may have on the matter.

Having taken a moment to calm himself further, Humphrey eyed the deer. For the second time that day, Earnest had to calm him down from an irrational fear.

"Then what are we doing?" Humphrey said somberly.

Earnest was glad to finally have Humphrey calm once more. He didn't take lightly to panicking, and he hated not being able to think clearly.

"If you were listening," Earnest began "Our intent is to stalk them."

Humphrey, still not fully understanding stalking from his inexperience, nodded in compliance.

"Stalking, got it." He agreed, even if only to keep Earnest from questioning him more.

Though he hoped Earnest would just allow them to sit there and watch, the old wolf easily saw through this fake gesture to understand.

"Now, tell my why being here is bad." Earnest questioned.

He knew the answer well enough as it was his test, but if they stayed there for too long he knew of the danger as well.

Understanding that they were in a bad spot with prey animals that he couldn't take down, Humphrey peered over the ledge of the rock.

Upon doing so, Humphrey was met with the face of a deer standing only feet away. Fearing that he may have been seen, he tore his head back and grinned towards Earnest.

"Because we're dangerously close?" He said nervously. He didn't want to be trampled and he thought this was as close as you could get.

Earnest shook his head and smiled.

"No, that's not it." He affirmed.

Humphrey looked around more for the answer and couldn't for the life of him figure how he could be so calm in a situation like this. If they had to run then...

His mouth nearly dropped when he thought this.

"Because I can't run fast enough if there's a stampede?" Humphrey spoke, frantically searching for a way to escape if that were the case.

Once more, Earnest shook his head. He didn't want the answer to be given away, but he had to stop Humphrey from panicking to show him.

"Kid, it's rocky terrain up here, they can't climb that well." Earnest stated and pointed on the rock they stood upon.

Humphrey looked down at the rock they sat on. It was sturdy and deeply embedded upon the hill, while the smaller rocks around it made it hard for the deer to even come close.

They were safe from a stampede, and from even a general attack, but Humphrey still didn't know why Earnest said that this area was a bad place to stay.

Having no answer fit to present to his teacher, Humphrey shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. He honestly had no clue as to what he needed to find.

Earnest didn't move even slightly, instead he allowed a moment to pass by them and bring with it a passing breeze.

"No clue, huh?" Earnest questioned. Even though he allowed Humphrey even a small clue, he didn't expect him to get it the first try.

"No idea." Humphrey replied and shook his head. He understood that Earnest was giving him a second more to find out why, but much to his efforts he had no answer still.

By then he had hoped Humphrey would understand, but it was clear that he still didn't know.

"We're up-wind of them kid." Earnest revealed to him.

As if on cue, another breeze passed by them, gently wafting in-between them and carrying itself to the field.

Then and there, Humphrey understood what that meant. If the wind carried their scent, then it would be easy for them to be noticed. Their cover would be blown and the results could be devastating.

Catching the look on Humphrey's face, Earnest continued "If you've got the wind carrying your scent to your prey, or your enemy, it will be hard for you to approach or escape."

"Since we're up-wind of them, we need to find a better spot." He stated as he peered over the edge of the rock to look over the herd. They had to leave that spot, but it had to be Humphrey to lead them to a better area.

"So tell me, where's the best spot to hide?" Earnest asked. He wanted to give Humphrey the chance to find a good hiding spot.

Humphrey thought he heard a sense of urgency in Earnest's tone, but he didn't know if it was truly there o not. Either way, they had to get to a spot where they would not only be unseen, but be in favor of the wind.

Humphrey stood and looked over the ledge as well. He didn't know exactly what he was looking for, but he didn't want to mess things up this time.

'No, no, no.' He repeated to himself as he glanced over the area. There were several places that he thought may have been good, including a rock far off. But each place that he looked was closer and closer to the deer with little relative shelter.

While he watched, and was sure Earnest was going to correct him, Humphrey felt yet another breeze pass by. It ruffled his fur and was a reminder to him that their time was short.

Just before he could try to see another spot, he was reminded to follow the direction of the wind.

Humphrey faced the direction it blew and he was greeted with a very different spot than he had originally thought.

He traced the direction the wind blew to the edge of the field. There, he could see a pile of broken tree trunks and a stump that was slightly hollowed.

"That fallen tree?" Humphrey pointed out, he hoped he was right.

He turned to see Earnest with a wide smile on his face.

"Exactly." Earnest confirmed.

He pointed towards the shelter, making sure he wasn't seen by the herd "It provides enough cover for us to hide well, and it's close to the forest for a quick escape.

He had to be sure Humphrey understood this, and with a simple nod from his student, he was sure the point was taken.

"Let's move," Earnest commanded "We have to get there quickly, and quietly."

Humphrey was less enthusiastic about moving from the rock, the deer couldn't get to them easily. But when he felt a soft spring breeze pass by, he quickly stood to follow his mentor.

He didn't want to be caught in the middle of a herd that knew where he was. Being this close to them was already dangerous enough in his eyes.

Following closely behind Earnest, the two walked bak up to the hill and began their trek towards the forest. They wouldn't be seen by the herd and they could easily escape when they needed.

For Humphrey this small journey brought back so many memories.

He had always lived in a more wooded area just as the one they walked through and open plains were something that happened only a few times throughout their territory.

The cascades of shadows cast by trees that they walked under reminded him of the many times he would find some fun activity with his group of friends.

Each step that he took down this path reminded him more and more of the life he left behind, and the life he had chosen to get into now.

While he was deep in his memories he heard a very loud snap, immediately he looked around to see what it was.

"I told you, be careful where you step kid!" Earnest said in a deep and hushed tone.

Humphrey looked to see where they were and to his amazement they were already at the fallen tree. He had absentmindedly walked there, completely oblivious to the path they had taken.

He didn't know that they were there, but the sound was too close for it to have originated elsewhere.

He raised his paw to see where it was and felt just under it an uneven patch of dirt. Cautiously, he looked to where his paw had been moments ago only to be met with a shattered twig.

Humphrey looked up to Earnest and smirked nervously, he wan't paying attention at all to their surroundings, and he nearly gave them away.

Earnest simply shook his head at the matter and went back to watching the herd, and from the continued noise beside him, he was sure Humphrey was too.

He had no idea of why Humphrey had seemed so mellow and even inattentive while they walked through the forest. He had tried talking to him, but whenever he did, he kept mumbling something that was still left unheard.

Still, in the end, Humphrey still needed a mentor; and Earnest still needed to teach him a valuable lesson.

"What can you tell me about their patterns?" He asked, barely peeking over the fallen stump long enough to see what he needed.

Humphrey, while he was trying to busy himself by getting a better lay of the area, heard Earnest's question.

He quickly stood and looked onto the herd. He couldn't believe that they were this close, but according to Earnest, this was the best course of action.

Humphrey could clearly see most of the heard and how they interacted with each other. He didn't know much about their patterns, but if they were anything like the caribou back home then they would be very similar.

Humphrey smiled when he thought back to this. He and his friends would at times watch the hunts, and see the herd run in a single direction. For the most part, they were well protected, but when they had several strong alphas on the hunt, anything could be taken down.

Realizing that the caribou were usually taken down by a group of varying alpas, and the fact that he only watched the take-downs, Humphrey was at a loss.

He didn't pay attention to the herd at all, and now of all times when he thought of something to answer with, his mind came up blank.

Against his better hope, Earnest had looked over his shoulder directly at him. As he had no suitable answer, the only thing Humphrey could do was nervously smile.

Earnest simply shook his head.

"They keep the doe and youngest members towards the center, while the oldest and strongest deer on the outside." He stated and turned back to the herd.

"Do you understand why they do that kid?" Earnest asked.

Once again, Humphrey tried to find anything that he could use to answer the question. He didn't really pay attention the caribou itself, he never had the need to before. The only thing he ever really studied about them was whatever part he ate when he was last in line.

Earnest, once again hearing no answer to his simple question, reluctantly sighed and slowly turned his head to face a still grinning Humphrey.

'Just like you were.' He whispered to himself.

Having Humphrey not know anything, though tiring, made this worthwhile to stand through; after all, he had a promise to uphold, and he didn't go back on his word.

"They have to protect their families, and it makes it hard for predators to get anything." Earnest stated as loudly as he could without attracting any attention. He wanted to make sure Humphrey heard well, but from the shy grin he received he doubted it.

Having had enough of simply giving the answer away, Earnest glared at Humphrey for a moment.

"Now what's the ideal target?" He asked with a very serious look.

Humphrey, after hearing this, looked around the small herd once more. He had to get a better understanding of what Earnest's lesson meant, and they wouldn't leave until he got it.

Peering from just above the fallen tree, Humphrey could see that There were several massive deer standing just meters away. He awed at the sight of being close to a massive buck that wore its antlers proudly.

'Definitely not easy.' He thought through his shock. Had he been at his best he would have still been easily trampled by such a massive and majestic creature.

Shaking his head and taking care not to make any noise to attract the dangerous foe to them, Humphrey continued to shift his eye from one deer to another.

He saw deer of all kinds. Some tall, others stocky; some had no antlers while others had too many to count. Not every deer had the same fur pattern, and some he couldn't tell apart.

Though they were all dispersed across the field, they stayed close enough to one another to act quickly in case a predator were to show itself to them. A feat that Humphrey understood well enough not to attract attention as this lesson was far riskier than its predecessor.

While Humphrey gazed over the herd, he still had no true clue where to look for this 'weak link' in their ranks. Soon enough, after he was sure he had seen everything, he turned back to Earnest and sighed.

He had half expected Earnest to scold him for not finding something, but instead Earnest hadn't been paying much attention to his self defeat.

Humphrey was curious as to why Earnest wasn't talking to him, but soon realized several things.

For one, this was the first time that he could remember standing completely at Earnest's blind side. But still there was something else.

Earnest had his head turned to face further to his left, he was facing towards a part of the herd that Humphrey had simply glanced at.

Humphrey understood that with Earnest, he was usually quiet unless he needed to tell Humphrey something. But now his silent gesture seemed as significant as his subtle words.

Quickly catching on, Humphrey traced his eyes to where Earnest seemed to be staring. There, to his surprise, was the answer he was looking for.

There were fewer deer in a small patch of grass near the outskirts of the wooded area they had walked through to get here. Each of them carelessly grazed and didn't bother to watch for any surrounding enemies.

There were no giant bucks standing guard, at least none that could get there in time. There were also very few deer that looked like they could react fast enough to escape the jaws of any predator.

Humphrey soon noticed that these deer were much younger in appearance, some looked not even a year old. They were straying away from the herd, and nobody was there to watch them.

'It's a good a guess as any.' Humphrey whispered to himself his answer, and he was ready to put it to the test.

While he was sure that Earnest hadn't payed much attention to him at all, Humphrey couldn't help but notice a small grin haplessly formed on the old wolf's muzzle.

He couldn't tell what Earnest was thinking, but whatever it was, Humphrey's test had a higher priority.

"The deer standing over there, where we came from?" Humphrey questioned unsure of if Earnest would agree or not.

The moment he gave his answer, Humphrey heard Earnest begin to sneer at the words. Humphrey, believed he was wrong.

While hearing his laugh and fearing the worst, Humphrey sighed in defeat. He wanted the answer, but he still had to learn something from the experience.

Earnest continued to chuckle at the response as he turned to face Humphrey. The first thing he saw was a mellow face and a slumped posture. But in spite of that, he continued to smile.

"It's about time you looked that way kid," Earnest jested "My eye was getting tired of waiting."

Humphrey didn't know what to say or think at that point. He was under the impression that Earnest was laughing at his mistake, but now it was just the opposite, Earnest was quietly guided him to the right spot.

A smile crept on Humphrey's face after this, the lesson wouldn't be easy, but having Earnest as a teacher made it more interesting.

Still mulling over his thoughts, Humphrey felt a slight tap at his side.

"Now what would we call that group?" Earnest asked quietly, tilting his head toward the small group of fawn.

Humphrey looked toward them once more. They weren't supervised by any means, and they could be in danger without knowing it.

"Anyone... adventurous?" Humphrey said through his teeth. He could only guess what sort of response there would be.

From this, Earnest grinned and nodded. He didn't know if Humphrey fully understood what was being said, so he went further.

He got Humphrey's attention by pointing at his cast and only faked a serious stare.

"You mean anyone who has a busted leg like you." He said in response.

Earnest was merely joking at the situation as he knew he could easily upset Humphrey. But he also wanted to ensure that Humphrey would learn not only from what was being said, but what was said without words.

Humphrey looked down at his cast. It to him was more than the sticks and vine that helped him walk, it was a constant reminder that he shouldn't go off by himself.

"Meaning?" Earnest quietly chided, jolting Humphrey out of his trance.

Humphrey sat there for a moment, he was baffled at the question. Earnest wanted him to explain his statement further, but he didn't know how.

He hadn't even seen the deer for more than a moment, and he still didn't know what to say to follow it up. There wasn't much that he could use to say why the few deer that were there were in danger.

They were just as he had said, 'adventurous'. Each of the fawn that were playing was away from the group just as he had explained. They weren't aware of the danger around them, they were just too young to...

Finally sorting the thought out of all that surrounded it, Humphrey understood a better part of the lesson.

The deer that were this young and away from their family were just not able to be protected easily. Any number of them could wander off and never return. They had no knowledge that they could live off of, and no skills to survive on their own. They needed to be looked after.

Putting two and two together, he grinned at what Earnest was trying to tell him. Humphrey was just like those few deer that were wandering off, he couldn't survive without a pack.

"Anyone that can't fend for themselves." Humphrey stated quickly. He was just loud enough to cause Earnest to shoot a glance at him and wave his paws in a 'hush' motion.

"Okay, okay, I get it," Humphrey whispered, holding his ears flat against and looking down at his cast "Anyone that gets left behind or wanders off."

He wasn't upset at Earnest, he only now understood that he had made a bad choice before. He could feel that everything he did was, up until now, undirected and impulsive.

He looked up to see Earnest staring back to the small group. He had to continue watching in case any wandering deer came toward them.

Once Earnest had seen that there were no deer moving towards them, and that they could quickly and easily slip back into the forest without attracting attention, he turned back to Humphrey and was startled at what he saw.

He didn't expect for Humphrey to fall into self pity so easily, but there he stood with his eyes cast down and barely paying attention now.

Though he wanted to leave in case they were spotted or any deer wandered over near them, Earnest had to deal with the problem at its source.

"Humphrey, listen up." Earnest said in a stern and hushed tone just loud enough for Humphrey and himself to hear.

Humphrey quickly jolted his head up, he was upset at what he had finally realized about himself. He had wanted to have the adventure, but now he could clearly see he had no direction.

Ever the astute wolf he was, Earnest sat and studied over Humphrey's features one by one.

He hated seeing his anyone in this state, but he knew what he needed to do to snap him out of it.

"Humphrey," He said in a quiet and calm voice "I tell you these things because I know you can learn a thing or two about surviving, and about yourself."

Humphrey's ears perked up when he mentioned this. He thought he knew everything about himself up until now, and time and time again he was proven wrong.

Ensuring that Humphrey was still paying attention, Earnest continued "You may make mistakes, but what matters most is that you learn from them before it's too late."

Even when hearing this, Humphrey started feeling better. He had made plenty of mistakes before, but sometimes learning from them wasn't always quick.

Earnest, having felt enough time was spent there, turned and faced the forest just behind them. It was clear overhead and he could easily see what, if anything lay hidden behind the tree line.

Seeing nothing there, Earnest stood and motioned for Humphrey to follow. As he took a step forward, his own words echoed through his head forcing him to look back.

"You're very fortunate kid," He said somberly and waited for Humphrey to stand as well "Some never get that chance, or for them it was too late."

Humphrey stood and walked towards him, careful not to make any heavy sounds with his cast. He was still deep in thought from what Earnest was telling him.

'Fortunate?' Humphrey thought. He hadn't felt fortunate, but he couldn't help but feel as though he had a second chance to make things right. But the last part was still a mystery to him, that some were too late to make changes, he just hoped that it wouldn't be him.

Taking light steps away from the deer herd, Humphrey heard one of the deer make a very startling and deep voiced call. Fearing he had been seen, he quickly turned to see the small group of straying deer cautiously walk back to the main herd.

Humphrey smiled at the sight, the deer would be back safely with their families. None of them would be harmed and the fact that they were close to their natural predators would be amiss.

"Wonderful thing isn't it?" Earnest called out from beside him. He had been watching the whole scene unfold and, though the deer would see him as a threat, he warmly smiled at the fawn returning to their families.

He turned to Humphrey, who had been eyeing the situation all the same with the same awe as a pup.

"What you learn is a gift that you can pass on." Earnest said matter-of-factly.

Humphrey broke his stare form the herd and turned to Earnest.

'A gift to pass on?' He whispered. Inwardly he understood what Earnest meant, that he could teach someone from his experience. It was the same thing Earnest was doing for him.

Seeing a smile begin to form on Humphrey's face as he knew it should, Earnest paced forward into the forest.

"That's all for today." He called back.

Humphrey, not wanting to have to search for him again, quickly followed suit for their journey back home. Upon reaching Earnest's side as quickly as he could hobble, Humphrey felt proud to have learned so much.

Earnest, hearing Humphrey catch up, decided to plan for the next day.

"Stealth enables you to not only approach, but also escape a situation." He said without bothering to look back, he knew Humphrey was slowly strolling beside him.

He walked carefully through the forest on the fastest route home; he was beginning to feel tired from the earlier part of the day, and he still had to find food for them both.

"Everyday at noon, I want you to go to this field to watch the deer," He explained as he looked around them "I want you to avoid being seen by them at all costs."

Humphrey heard this and questioned the idea.

"So stay there and watch the deer go by then?" He asked curiously. He had enjoyed the afternoon, but having to watch deer everyday would possibly get boring. But with Earnest around, he could at least have someone to talk to while committing to such a mind-numbing task.

Earnest strode forward, nodding slightly as he went.

"You are to 'observe' them, and as a word of caution, I won't be there if something goes wrong." He stated cautiously.

Humphrey froze when he heard this.

"Alone?" He shouted in surprise. Earnest had just told him that being alone was the worst thing for him, but what about this situation changed?

"Yep, this one you'll have to do solo kid." Earnest replied hastily and continued his pace.

"Great." Humphrey sighed, still dumbfounded. He wondered constantly how this lesson would help him throughout the day, but now he understood.

He had to go himself and watch the deer now, and if he was caught then it would be the end for him. He thought that Earnest would accompany him, but that wouldn't be the case.

With all of this flooding his mind, he couldn't help but dread what this supposed third lesson would be.

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**Okay, I'm pretty much officially back, for the most part. I remember last time where I said "I'll post updates and blablabla", yeah, trying to find a great schedule with what I have new. Also this next thing sums up what's going on.**

**DLW, why did you take so long for this story to be updated! I know I know, I'm working on it. What about your other stuff? This weekend... You said that before! True, but now I have more free time!**

**That being said, expect more of this story to come as we head to the halfway point in part1ch3. And trust me, it gets even better! I'm also picking up on my drawing soon, and hope to use that for future stories.**

**More stories to come, new content, and hopefully a newer format. And for those of you who like anime, I have a "Ginga Densetsu Weed" story in the works.**

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O). **

**Also, for anyone interested, there's a fan-fiction recommendation page for A&O on tvtropes now. If you have a chance, you may want to check it out.**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


	34. Pt1 Ch3 Ep8

**Hey all DLW here with a new ep. Okay, once again, I apologize for my absence from this story, I'll be back on more with it very soon. I also want to take this time to thank all of my readers, reviews, follows, and favs, You've all been great and I'm hoping you're enjoying the story, there's more to come. News and announcements at the bottom. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Alpha and Omega. Except for the O/C's.**

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**Humphrey the Lone Wolf**

**Part 1 Valley of Grey**

**Chapter 3 The Pack**

**:Lesson 3:**

It was a quiet and peaceful afternoon in the valley, and Humphrey was now enjoying it to the best of his ability. For he was blissfully asleep near the fallen tree that would serve as his post for watching the deer herd.

He had woken up earlier than usual, and found Earnest roaming around the forest just outside of their den. He was surprised to have seen his mentor walking and talking to himself about something, but he never got the chance to ask what it was as he had to 'observe' the deer now.

When he had gotten here, he had watched the deer for a while and it was still early, and as he wasn't looking forward to his time with the deer, he quickly got bored.

He didn't know when, nor for how long, but Humphrey eventually drifted into a peaceful sleep on his watch.

"Ah!" Humphrey yelped, feeling a sharp pain fire from the just behind his left ear.

Never being an easy thing to wake up to, nor one that's particularly pleasant, Humphrey raised himself to a sitting position, completely unaware of where he was.

He had vaguely remembered that he had to go and watch the deer, as instructed by Earnest, and that he somehow managed to get to said field some time ago.

While still trying to piece together what had happened, Humphrey suddenly felt the stinging pain sear across his ear once more.

He took his good working paw and placed it over his ear to ease the pain as he searched for who or what was responsible for abruptly awakening him.

His eyes glanced and grazed over the small area that he made into his 'lookout' and soon he came across something that was completely out of place for its surroundings.

"A rock?" Humphrey muttered to himself, feeling that it and the pain he felt were connected.

As he stared he found that it was indeed a rock, slightly bigger than his nose, that had somehow managed to land on him, and was now resting in the same place he had his nap.

He didn't know where it came from, but surely it couldn't have fallen from the sky, and it definitely wasn't there when he got here.

While he observed the strange coincidence, something hovering the hollowed trunk caught his eye. It looked to be some sort of twig or branch, but it wasn't connected to anything as far as he could tell.

Now being slightly awake, Humphrey trailed his eyes over the 'stick' and, much to his dismay, it was attached to something that he had dreaded being near.

He dreaded this because it was no 'stick', in fact, this was an antler, and the only thing with this feature for miles were the deer that he was supposed to be watching.

'Way too close.' Humphrey whispered, eyeing the horns of the massive buck in front of him.

It had not yet noticed him, but it wouldn't take long for it to peer over the tree and spot him. Humphrey could practically reach out and touch its snout, though he decided it best not to.

Cautiously, he watched as it lifted its head and turned in response to a call from beyond the border of its heard.

Slowly and carefully, Humphrey stood and backed away from the deer without making even the slightest of sounds. Neither twig nor rock moved as he shuffled backward and was soon out of sight from any deer that could spot him.

Once far enough away, Humphrey finally caught his breath again.

He was glad that he was hiding where he was, he didn't like being too close to the deer. Though they were like caribou, he would have rather been on a ledge than down in the flatlands, at least it was a better hiding spot.

Now being away from the herd, Humphrey noticed something was different about the area. It was a clear blue when he had gotten here, but now a slight orange hue was on the rise.

Looking up, he saw that the sun was overhead, this could only mean that it was passed the time that he was supposed to be home.

He was instructed, by Earnest, to return to the den when noon had passed for yet another lesson.

"Just great." Humphrey sighed, shaking his head and walking at a safe distance from the herd.

As he walked along the outskirts of the field, Humphrey could hear the high pitched cries and deep bellows of the herd. In every sense, it reminded him of his former home.

It wasn't just the same, luscious green and tall grass that the caribou all sought. Nor was it that he sat in a nice spot, warming his fur in the afternoon sun and enjoying his time with his friends. No, it was neither of these, yet even here it was the same.

But it reminded him of how he would spend hours on end watching the caribou flock and disperse at even the slightest spotting of one of the packs hunters. He was always excited to be among the first to see how successful the hunts were. But even still, there was something more that he remembered.

Out of all of the hunts that he had watched along the ridge of the valley, only one ever made him both terrified of the hunt, and wistful that he was more capable to be there. Had he not had his reservations about being too close to a living caribou, he would have potentially tried to help.

This hunt, of course, was the only hunt that Kate had ever been in. It was the first time that he had seen her since she had gone off to Alpha school, and the first time he had nearly lost her.

'Kate.' Humphrey muttered, for she had been on his mind ever since he began his search for a new home. But even being out of Jasper, away from home, away from family and friends was nothing compared to leaving and not knowing what became of her.

"Bout time you showed up kid." Came the sound of a familiar voice that startled him for a moment.

He froze immediately and tore his head in the direction of the call.

Resting casually under one of the many trees that he had come to recognize, was none other than Earnest. The red wolf idly twitched his ears ever so often to at the slightest sound, and even though he had heard Humphrey approaching, he barely looked in his direction.

Being so lost in thought, Humphrey hadn't realized that he was so close to his new home. He had traveled unaware of where he was, but now he could easily see familiar territory.

"I'm back." Humphrey said in cheerful tone despite his run in with the deer. He knew he had to stay upbeat, or else Earnest may think that he may have made some serious mistake.

"I can see that, kid." Earnest snapped back wittily, turning his blind eye completely in Humphrey's direction.

Still not sure on whether or not Earnest would snap at him for comments on his blindness, Humphrey slowly trudged on. He didn't want any confrontation that could possibly cost him the only chance he had to get back home.

"You had fun on your watch?" Earnest chided, listening to his steps but still not truly focusing on what Humphrey was doing.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I?" Humphrey replied, taking the rare opportunity to have a sense of pride in what he had done, well, what he almost fully achieved.

Upon giving his report, Humphrey heard what could only be described as a short huff from Earnest's direction. From what Humphrey heard before, it was the kind of huff that meant a lecture.

"Did you get spotted by any of the deer, Humphrey?" Earnest asked sharply, finally focusing his attention to see what Humphrey would say.

As if a fire broke out just in front of him, Humphrey's eyes grew wide, he gasped and quickly shook his head.

"No, no, no," He protested, getting an awkward yet stern look from Earnest that could label him as guilty "It went by without a hitch."

Realizing his mistake of having just possibly given himself away from his behavior, Humphrey forced as fake of a smile as he could muster. He knew that Earnest was possibly the smartest wolf that he had come across, but maybe even he would not catch this little mistake.

Earnest sat there eyeing Humphrey for a long moment. Had he not been too busy enjoying the day, he would have delved further to question Humphrey's sharp answer.

Feeling that the time was right to move on, Earnest smiled and slowly stood up. Though he didn't want to cause any sort of alarm or panic, he still had to show Humphrey where to improve.

"Good," Earnest said, shaking himself of loose dirt as he began to walk near Humphrey, "Worst thing you could do is fall asleep out there."

With the words of caution, Humphrey fretted what he was about to hear. He had fallen asleep plenty of times watching the caribou herds, but even then he hadn't been so reckless.

"Really?" Humphrey asked, choosing his word carefully and brightening his expression to seem less guilty to his mistake.

Earnest walked closer to Humphrey, nodding his head and staring intently to emphasize his point.

"If even one catches you off guard, then it could be over for you." Earnest cautioned in a deep, ominous tone and inched forward.

Humphrey cringed at hearing this. He had known that getting too close to a large prey animal was a bad thing, but he had never been this close to one unintentionally until earlier. And he certainly never fell asleep when the caribou were only a few feet away from him, it would have been the end for him even then.

Sensing Humphrey's hesitation, and knowing that he had gotten his point across, Earnest lifted his paw to usher him to calm down.

Having caught Humphrey's attention and seeing the look on his face become more stable instead of frantic, Earnest continued with his instruction.

"However, in case you did fall asleep," Earnest said, trying to make the situation lighter than it was "Then hope that something wakes you to watch."

Finally done, Earnest looked upon a still smiling and fidgeting Humphrey.

"Yeah, I... couldn't imagine." Humphrey replied nervously, and mindlessly rubbed the sore spot on his head.

He was thankful for the slight inconvenience despite the pain, but he still had wished that it could have gone by a little easier. Though somewhere int he back of his mind, he knew Earnest had known of his mistake.

Not hearing any argument against his wise words, Earnest walked slowly past Humphrey. He couldn't linger there any longer, he had a promise to keep, and he intended on keeping it.

"Come on kid," He said with a sense of urgency "Daylight's wasting and you've got more to learn."

Silently, Humphrey turned and watched Earnest go by, and he himself was soon to follow. Though his sense of dread as to what the lesson would be was conflicted to say the least.

Earnest had gotten him this far, but every time he had to learn something new, the fear of the unknown struck him unlike ever before. Even when he was in Jasper taking up dangerous work and breaking up fights, he was around friends and family.

But then, just as now, he had someone to help him. Should he give up to his own fear, then he would never see Jasper again.

As this thought ran through his mind, Humphrey shook it away, for the fear of what he didn't know would have to wait. Home was just ahead, and this lesson would help him reach it.

Besides, Earnest hadn't made every lesson overbearingly hard for him. And as this would be the final lesson, Humphrey became more anxious than fearful.

"So what do you have planned for today?" Humphrey asked hesitantly, following as closely as his encumbered limb would allow. His anxiety to finally know the answer was getting to him.

"Something simple." Earnest replied flatly.

He had payed little attention to what was being asked of him as his focus was on how to teach Humphrey properly. He continued his stride towards the rolling hills that made anything difficult to find.

"Simple?" Humphrey repeated.

He had no clue as to what Earnest's definition of 'simple' was, but whatever it may be, it was leading them closer toward home.

Though he asked, hopeful for any kind of response, none was given to him. With his anxious reservations on the rise, he is mind went in every possible direction.

'Hunting? Fighting? I know it's one of those.' Humphrey repeated this thought over and over again in his mind. To him, there was nothing else that he could think of.

As he was mentally playing this scenario, Humphrey heard a rustle ahead of him, and when he looked up Earnest had disappeared beyond a line of bushes.

Standing on this side of the bush and baffled at what had just occurred, Humphrey soon began to smile. He found this scene all too familiar to him, they were near the lake once more.

"Any day now kid." He heard Earnest's voice through the bush.

With a smile on his face and without further hesitation as he could finally guess what it was, Humphrey walked forward, slowly disappearing into the bush as well.

As he paced himself through, he felt that this was different from before. He not only felt more confident about the lesson, but he quickly found his way through the thickened fauna, barely a prickled leaf got caught in his fur as he found his way out.

Poking his nose through the exit of the bushes, Humphrey was met by yet another astonishing scene.

The sun had been setting by the time they had arrived here, but only now did could he truly see how brilliant it was.

Radiant hues of orange danced off of the many ripples in the water as soft, and gentle breezes swept by. He couldn't explain why, but ever since he had seen this lake before, it had always stood out as the most beautiful thing he had seen in the valley.

Acknowledging the lakes wonder, and now feeling as though this would be as easy as he was told, Humphrey focused his attention towards Earnest.

The red wolf had been wading in the water, scanning the surface and waiting patiently for Humphrey's arrival, he was as prepared as he could be.

"So, swimming?" Humphrey asked, confident that he had the answer now.

But instead of answering him immediately, Earnest continued to search flawlessly over the rippling waters.

"I think in your case it would be drowning," Earnest chided, pacing a few feet away while staring at the lakes surface with great focus "You already have a stone tied to your paw."

Hearing this and realizing that he had it all wrong, Humphrey looked down to his cast. It may have protected his leg, but it surely wouldn't protect him if he needed to swim.

He should have known that whatever Earnest would teach him would ensure that he would succeed. But with his answer quickly fading away, he was curious as to what they were out here for.

"The last lesson I have for you is how to catch your food." Earnest replied with a stern tone, finally breaking away from watching the waters to turn his one eye to Humphrey, "We're going to be catching fish this time."

"So, we're fishing?" Humphrey questioned, nearly choking back his words from his last experience at the sport.

"No, we're catching fish," Earnest quickly retorted, and caught faint glimpses of small shadows running by his paws "Not thrashing around and calling it a day, now get over here."

Though Earnest said what he did, Humphrey was still skeptical. He had, twice since his journey, failed at catching anything at all.

Reluctant and now feeling as though he would be at this lesson for hours, Humphrey stepped into the waters on the bank.

The smooth ebb and flow of the ripples was calming despite his unnerved state of mind, yet, somehow even through this, Humphrey wanted to know how to catch even this simple prey.

Then his thought shifted, was this just the beginning of something greater? Would this be what he needed to go after bigger prey?

"So, when do I start hunting?" Humphrey asked, completely disregarding the task at hand.

He was both hopeful and terribly nervous about even attempting to hunt anything. It was something that he had thought of trying once or twice, but as it was more dangerous than his usual life style and the fact that he was an Omega.

It may have been a good decision for him not to, but in the back of his mind, he had always taken wonder to how things may have changed between him and Kate if he could hunt at least.

Earnest looked up from the few fish that swam dangerously close to him, even he could barely believe what he had just heard.

"Kid, unless you somehow miraculously catch something, hunting won't be possible for you." Earnest said in a satirical tone.

The last thing he wanted to do was upset him, but Humphrey needed to be shown that he shouldn't bite off more than he could chew.

With a sigh, Earnest looked down to the fish and continued, "Humphrey, my point is, you need to start on something manageable, when you're ready for something like hunting, I'll show you."

Humphrey stood in the shallow water and listened. He had gotten far too ahead of himself, and once again, Earnest had to be the one to tell him that he hasn't grown to that level yet, he still had to overcome even this challenge.

Seeing around the bend and knowing that he had a goal in mind, Humphrey, instead of moping, walked towards Earnest with a confident smile.

Catching this bright expression, Earnest returned the same smile that Humphrey had given him. This time, he knew he was ready.

"Let's try this again." Earnest said boldly, waiting to see how Humphrey would react this time.

Humphrey waded a few feet into the water as quickly as his legs let him. He went to a spot just deep enough to where the fish were able to swim around him, but shallow enough for him to stand in.

He had originally thought that Earnest would catch a fish first, or at least catch them along side him, but he could see from his mentors still stance that this would not be the case.

Shifting his eyes from Earnest to his paws, Humphrey saw several fish of varying sizes swimming around, it was the perfect place for him to be.

Upon the first glimmer of a fish close to him, Humphrey reached down and snapped on the first fish he could get. The only problem was that he ended up with a mouth full of water instead.

Disappointed that he had nothing by the time he pulled his snout out of the water, Humphrey attempted his technique again. Seeing a solitary fish and hoping that he would catch it, but even his second, and third, and fourth times proved futile.

Tired from all of his attempts, Humphrey pulled his head to the surface once more.

Now drenched in water and panting heavily, Humphrey looked toward the fish as they swam by. They seemed blissfully unaware of the predator as they made small circles around him.

"I still can't get it right." Humphrey said in-between breaths.

Despite his missed attempts, Earnest smiled proudly. He no longer saw Humphrey as the wolf that gave up, this time he saw him as the wolf that was trying to succeed.

"Kid, it's not that you got it wrong," Earnest said boldly, wading toward his pupil and disturbing the fish that were in his path, "But there was something missing."

Humphrey looked up from his momentary reprieve.

"Something, missing?" He repeated.

He had done everything he could think of and he still hadn't caught a single fish, but now he was interested in Earnest was telling him.

Standing mere inches away from Humphrey, Earnest stood and turned his eye toward the unaware fish.

"Patience." He said simply.

"Patience?" Humphrey retorted, having caught his breath and now in thought to what Earnest meant.

Earnest nodded, "Be patient with your strikes, sometimes you only have one chance to do so."

As a few fish came back around between them, Earnest thought of what to instruct Humphrey to do.

"Alright kid, here's what I want you to try." Earnest said, now lowering himself to sit in the water.

He took a deep breath and began, "First off, relax. If you're too eager to catch your prey then you may end up losing sight of it."

Humphrey just then, noticed how tense he was. As he had never caught a fish before, his eagerness to finally achieve this goal was getting to him.

He calmed himself down, no longer willing to snap at just anything that passed by him. He realized that he would only make himself more tired as he continued his own approach.

"Good, now wait until you see a fish swim close to you." Earnest instructed.

Following his words, Humphrey looked back down to the shallow water. A few fish were gathering there, and they were just close enough for him to-.

"Don't lunge for it just yet," Earnest cautioned, stopping Humphrey just before he managed to snap at it "Make sure it stays close, and get closer to it."

Taking note that he needed to be closer to ensure a catch, Humphrey moved closer until the tip of his nose was slightly touching the water.

When Earnest saw that everything was in order, he nodded once and smiled.

"Alright Humphrey," He said with a sense of pride "When you're ready, snap at it, and don't let go."

Getting the okay to continue, Humphrey stood still. A few shadows of the fish he had seen were gathering around and swirled around just below his jaw.

He had taken caution to make sure that one stayed for a moment, and as it did, Humphrey lunged for it.

The next thing Humphrey knew, he had latched onto something that was now trying to escape from his jaws as frantically as it could. Instinctively, Humphrey drew his head out of the water, and the fish he had in his jaws came with him.

A wave of both excitement and panic washed over him as he gripped the fish. He had it in his jaws, but it was frantically trying to escape, he couldn't let that happen again.

Happy that his instruction worked, Earnest told him his next step.

"Good, now walk it to dry ground." He said, hoping that Humphrey was paying attention through all the thrashing the fish made.

Humphrey did hear it but only partly. In truth, all he heard was 'ground', and that's the first thing he looked for.

Seeing dry land in front of him, Humphrey walked towards it, enduring the fishes attempt to escape, and fighting through the slight heaviness he felt from both his leg and waterlogged fur.

What seemed to take hours ended in just moments as Humphrey walked up to the bank. But he didn't stop there, he didn't stop walking until he managed to step up to the bush that would separate the lake from the rest of the land.

And just as he got there, he finally released the fish, his first catch and now crowning achievement on his way toward better goals.

Though he could see it, he couldn't believe it. Humphrey had not only caught a decent sized fish, but he also unknowingly ensured that it wouldn't get away.

Seeing his pupil finally catch something of his own, Earnest calmly waded out of the water, walking as silently and as swiftly as he could.

"Good job kid," He said boastfully, walking next to Humphrey and getting a good look at the fish himself "Looks like you've caught your dinner."

Humphrey couldn't find the words to say, he was just too ecstatic that he had been able to do this. He felt like he could accomplish anything now.

Earnest looked on, happy himself that Humphrey learned everything that he needed for now. Even though he had everything that was needed, it didn't mean the he couldn't be taught.

Earnest watched a bit more, and then focused his attention toward the lake, he still had to get his own food. He also had more to say.

As he turned and headed for the waters once more, he called to Humphrey from the shore, saying "Kid other two lessons were for you to learn survival skills, but even those were just small steps until now."

"Why is this one so important?" Humphrey asked, watching his fish flop futilely and hearing Earnest wade back into the water effortlessly.

He didn't understand why even stealth and tracking were lesser in comparison to this. He thought that the three lessons were equal in stature.

Earnest smiled and pointed towards Humphrey's catch.

"Try tracking and stalking without getting anything at the end," He said matter-of-factly "You can miss your target, and never catch your prey."

Humphrey looked down to his fish. As its flailing became weaker, he understood what Earnest meant by this.

"The same can be said about an enemy, if they are out for you, then them not finding you made their efforts useless." Earnest replied, following the same technique he had just taught Humphrey and catching a fish of similar size.

Ever the more experienced of the two, Earnest accomplished his task with blinding speed and soon carried his catch off to the shore where Humphrey waited.

Dropping his fish, Earnest smiled at Humphrey to tell him how to apply this lesson.

"Every night, I want you to catch one fish." He said calmly, tilting his head toward the lake.

"Just one?" Humphrey asked, by about now he had realized just how hungry he was. He couldn't possibly survive off of one fish every day.

To his surprise, Earnest nodded carefully.

"That's right, just one," Earnest replied.

Knowing where Humphrey was headed with his question, Earnest looked toward the lake.

"If you're hungry, you can always get more," Earnest informed him, earning a slight grin from Humphrey as he went on "But be warned, only take what you need."

What Earnest saw next when he had finished his speech didn't surprise him. Humphrey gave him a stare that was between skepticism, and concern.

Cautiously, Earnest turned to face him eye to eyes. As the days lesson was over, he could finally enjoy what time he had now.

"I can tell by your look, you don't understand why, so I'll tell you," Earnest said, forming a cheeky grin "Any more and it might actually be a challenge."

As Humphrey heard this, he rolled his eyes. He had hoped for a serious answer, but even he understood when Earnest was joking with him, sometimes he did.

"You just wait a while, I'll show you how a pro catches them." Humphrey snapped back with a cheeky smile as well.

Smirking though having no intent to keep his taunt going, Earnest went on, "But honestly Humphrey, if you keep taking more than you already need, then the fish will be gone for good."

While still laughing at the remark, Humphrey listened more so carefully as to what Earnest was saying.

"It's the same with the deer," Earnest carried on, pointing past the shrubbery and in the direction of the field "If you keep senselessly taking away from everything, there won't be anything left."

Hearing his wise words, Humphrey thought back to how the pack hunts went. Their pack always had enough food to go around because they only hunted what was needed.

The eastern wolves, however, were not so fortunate as they had very few, if any, caribou in their part of the valley at all. Humphrey didn't know whether this was because of the change in seasons, or because of their constant hunts that drove them away.

Earnest noticed the mellow mood that Humphrey sat in, and for the first time, he didn't know if he was being understood or not.

Despite the change in tone, Earnest went on.

"That's why it's necessary for us to hunt. If there are no hunters, the deer would eat everything in the valley," Earnest pointed out, calmly tilting his head to see several stars beginning to shine "We may be the best predators around, but that doesn't make us exempt from the same fate."

Just as Earnest did, Humphrey found himself facing toward the sky to see night overtake the sky.

"Only take what you need," Earnest cautioned with a slowly fading smile "Remember that others have to survive as well, just as you and I do."

Humphrey took these words to mind. He hadn't been selfish, but this lesson could prove useful under any circumstance. Should he take more than what he needed, it meant that someone else would suffer for it.

While still astonished and amazed at the lesson and the sight of the stars appearing, there was still one question on his mind.

"So, what now?" Humphrey asked, looking away from the stars to his mentor.

Earnest, however, continued to stare into the heavens as he always did.

"We eat." He said flatly.

Humphrey sighed slightly, surprised that he didn't understand what was being said.

"No, not that," He replied, closing his eyes and finding the words he was looking for "I mean, with my training."

Having said all that needed to be asked, Humphrey opened his eyes and awaited an answer.

For a moment, Earnest was silent, seemingly lost in his stare.

Humphrey didn't know what this meant, but continued to wait, he did have to learn patience after all. And moments later, Earnest stopped his stargazing and looked him in the eyes.

"You'll keep up with this training for several weeks." Earnest proclaimed in neither an overbearing, nor mellowed tone.

"Weeks..." Humphrey repeated sorrowfully, pinning his ears back and looking down on his lowly accomplishment of a caught fish.

It seemed even with his great goals, and newfound confidence, that even he could make anything move along faster. It was patience that he was supposed to have learned, but practicing this one would be tougher than he thought.

Earnest chuckled lightly at the display.

"Keep your head up kid," Earnest spoke cheerfully, pointing at Humphrey's cast "Once I know you're ready, I'll help you get back."

Humphrey then understood what he meant. Though he knew everything that he needed to know to get back, he needed to wait until he was strong enough for his journey to be successful.

Seeing no need for any further words, and with their food becoming less fresh as time marched on, Earnest looked back towards his fish.

"Now," He motioned toward Humphrey, each of them having caught their own food this time "Let's eat."

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**Okay, I'm trying to make a comeback with this story, so as such, expect several chapters this week to get caught up. Also, we're quickly approaching the last few chapters of Part1, from what I've counted, there are 12 left, and trust me, you won't want to miss it.**

**Also, for you Pokemon fans out there, I'm hoping to have something of a good story for you possibly next weekend, and it will be a very long running series, anyone like an epic Lucario story?**

**"A&O A Second Look" Is out, check it out on my profile or here along with "Alpha and Omega: The Series". Type it in after the .net in fanfiction (/topic/118805/74395964/1/Things-missed-in-A-O).**

**Also, be sure to check out ****"Alpha and Omega: The Series" in the forum section.**

**Lastly, for those interested, there's an A&O fanfiction recommendation now on tvtropes.**

**If you liked this story and have time please post a review. If you want to keep up with the story fav or follow. Questions, comments, concerns, feel free to pass me a P.M... More to come soon. Till Next Time DLW.**


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